Breaking It Down and Building It Out:

Enhancing Collective Capacity to Improve Early Childhood Teacher Preparation in Illinois

Celina Chatman Nelson, Catherine Main, and Jennifer Kushto-Hoban, with Members of the Appraising Early Childhood Teacher Preparation in Illinois work group

University of Illinois at Chicago College of Education

June 2012

Acknowledgements
The work described in this report was made possible by a grant to the College of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago from The Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust (Dean Victoria Chou, Principal Investigator). We would like to thank Program Officers Peggy Mueller and Gudelia Lopez for their support and guidance on the project and for their helpful feedback on earlier versions of this document. We would also like to thank Deanna Durica, formerly of the Governors Office of Early Childhood Development, and the Workforce Development Committee of the Illinois Early Learning Council for working with us to identify and engage key stakeholders in the Illinois early childhood care and education community. We give special thanks to participants in the Appraising Early Childhood Teacher Preparation in Illinois work group for volunteering their time and expertise to this project. It is through their expert knowledge and experience that we were able to identify key barriers in preparing teachers to work with all young children and their families in diverse settings and to make recommendations for improvement.

Appraising Early Childhood Teacher Preparation in Illinois work group participants and organizational affiliation:
Barbara Abel Brenda Arksey Jennifer Asimow Ava Belisle-Chatterjee Cheryl Bulat Celina Chatman Nelson Victoria Chou Rhonda Clark Gail Conway Isolda Davila Marie Donovan Lynn Firsel Kay Henderson Tywanda Jiles Denise Jordan Karina Kelly Brenda Klosterman Jennifer Kushto-Hoban Catherine Main Mark McHugh Marlene McKenzie Sue Moustakas Thomas Phillion Deborah Rogers-Jaye Allen Rosales Christine Ryan Joni Scritchlow Kathleen Sheridan Sonia Soltero Patricia Steinhaus Sharon Syc Alethia Travis Joyce Weiner Shannon Yeager University of Illinois at Chicago American Chinese Service League Harold Washington College Columbia College Morton College University of Illinois at Chicago University of Illinois at Chicago Illinois State Board of Education Chicago Metro Association for the Education of Young Children City of Chicago: Family Support Services DePaul University Roosevelt University Illinois State Board of Education (retired) Govenors State University City of Chicago: Family Support Services Jump Start Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville University of Illinois at Chicago University of Illinois at Chicago One Hope United Centers for New Horizons Sand Box Schools of Early Care and Education Roosevelt University Harold Washington College & UIC Christopher House Chicago Public Schools: Office of Early Childhood INCCRRA National Louis University DePaul University Chicago State University Erikson Institute Happy Holidays Nursery & Kindergarten Ounce of Prevention Fund Kendall College

Breaking It Down and Building It Out: Enhancing Collective Capacity to Improve Early Childhood Teacher Preparation in Illinois
Celina Chatman Nelson, Catherine Main, and Jennifer Kushto-Hoban, With Members of the Appraising Early Childhood Teacher Preparation in Illinois work group University of Illinois at Chicago College of Education June 2012

About Appraising Early Childhood Teacher Preparation in Illinois

Funded by The Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust, Appraising Early Childhood Teacher Education in Illinois (AECTP-IL)1 builds on and extends the work of the Metro Chicago project, also funded by the trust. Both projects emerged out of a collaborative undertaking by the 22 members of the Council of Chicago Area Deans of Education (CCADE) to document and improve their teacher preparation programs, work that was also supported by the Trust. The objectives for AECTPIL were to (1) conduct in-depth analysis of Illinoiss early learning landscape for quality teaching of children, ages birth to eight years, and (2) use this analysis to recommend an ambitious teacher education action agenda for Illinois early childhood stakeholders. AECTP-IL project staff worked with the Governors Office of Early Childhood Development and the Workforce Development Committee of the Illinois Early Learning Council to identify key members of the states early childhood care and education community, whom the project invited to participate in a work group to carry out the project objectives. Project staff extended 26 initial invitations to individuals throughout Chicago and the state, asking each of them to recommend colleagues whom they believed would be appropriate to participate in the project. In all, 32 of a total 38 invited professionals attended at least one meeting or sent a designee. Of these, more than 20 remained engaged for the duration of the project, via communications through a listserv, a project website, and six in-person meetings over the course of an academic year (nine months). Participants represent several sectors related to early childhood care and education, including higher education, community-based organizations, public schools, private (for- and not-for-profit) early childhood care and education providers, local and state agencies and offices, and advocacy organizations. The group sought consensus around key program and policy issues in early childhood teacher education in Illinois and developed a set of consensus recommendations

Victoria Chou, Principal Investigator; Celina Chatman Nelson, Project Director; Catherine Main, Early Childhood Specialist/ Project Consultant; Jennifer Kushto-Hoban, Project Associate.

for addressing these issues. This document describes the groups conclusions and recommendations based on relevant research and policy.

Introduction
As education reform continues to take center stage in contemporary U.S. government and policy, ECE programs are increasingly tasked with ensuring every child enters formal schooling ready to learn. There is considerable debate around what this readiness entails and how best to achieve it, but most experts agree that high-quality ECE experiences most certainly start with a teacher who understands how young children learn and develop. Unlike K12 education, however, early childhood education takes many different forms and occurs in a variety of settings and is governed and administered by a broad array of entities and institutions.2 This complexity makes it difficult to standardize how we prepare teachers for the ECE classroom, and at the same time, there is a resounding call within the early childhood education and care community to improve preparation and increase the pool of highly qualified teachers. The American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) recently acknowledged this complexity in preparing ECE teachers. AACTE convened a Focus Council on Early Childhood Education, and among its conclusions was that a miscellany of institutions has historically carried out the preparation of ECE teachers and caregivers, resulting in fragmentation among multiple constituents.3 The miscellany of institutions is, in fact, a necessary result of the more complex landscape of early childhood education as compared to that of K12 education. Whereas public K12 education overwhelmingly occurs in schools, is regulated by state boards of education, and is administered by local education agencies, public early childhood education occurs in a variety of settings both in and out of schools. Hence, although colleges and universities do a large share of preparing and developing teachers, the miscellany of institutions also includes those various entities who hire them to provide services to young children and their families: community-based organizations, state and local education agencies, private forprofit early childhood care and education providers, private for-profit businesses and corporations, individuals, and museums and other public educational entities. Also, there has been increasing interest in teacher residency and alternative teacher certification programs. For institutions of higher education to be key suppliers of high-quality ECE teachers, there needs to be better coordination and collaboration across all entities involved in preparing and developing the workforce. AECTP-ILs work suggests that, by working together in new and more efficient ways, the miscellany of institutionsincluding higher educationcan build its collective capacity to improve ECE teacher preparation and ensure a diverse, high-quality workforce that is well prepared to support the academic, social, and emotional development of all children ages
See Whitebrook, M., Gomby, D., Bellm, D., Sakai, L., & Kipnis, F. (2009). Preparing teachers of young children: The current state of knowledge, and a blueprint for the future. Part 2: Effective teacher preparation in early care and education: Toward a comprehensive research agenda. Berkeley, CA: Center for the Study of Child Care Employment, Institute for Research on Labor and Employment, University of California, Berkeley. 3 American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, Focus Council on Early Childhood Education (2004). The early childhood challenge: Preparing high-quality teachers for a changing society. Washington, DC: AACTE.
2

For institutions of higher education to be key suppliers of high-quality ECE teachers, there needs to be better coordination and collaboration across all entities involved in preparing and developing the workforce.

zero to eight years in diverse settings. We describe the AECTP-IL work groups conclusions and specific recommendations in this regard, but first we present some background for our work. We begin with a brief overview of what early childhood education entails and follow with a summary of the broader policy context within which this work occurs. We then describe the work groups deliberations around key issues and challenges in preparing the ECE teaching workforce, guided and informed by our review of existing literature on relevant topics.

What is early childhood education? Generally, outside of the early care and education field, people equate early childhood education with preschool. In fact, however, early childhood covers the range from zero to eight years, or prenatal/birth to third grade.
Before we can begin to consider how best to prepare ECE teachers, we must first clarify to what early childhood education refers. Generally, outside of the early care and education field, people equate early childhood education with preschool. In fact, however, early childhood covers the range from zero to eight years, generally characterized as comprising three developmental stagesinfants and toddlers, preschool age, and school age (early elementary). Both within and across these ages and stages, care and instruction is delivered in a variety of settings and in many different ways (see Figure 1).

Whom do ECE programs serve, and where?

Early childhood education encompasses services for children and their families from the prenatal period through third grade. Although there is substantial variability in individual human development, there are unique sets of needs and circumstances associated with each of the commonly recognized stages of development. For example, as much as 85% of human brain growth and development occurs before children reach three years of age, so very young children benefit greatly from activities that stimulate cognitive functions.4 The preschool years, on the other hand, are marked by childrens greater need to self-regulate their behavior and emotions, and thus education and care for this group has focused heavily on fostering positive social-emotional development. And finally, school-age childrenequipped with more highly developed cognitive and self-regulatory skillscan focus on learning specific academic content while continuing to develop in other areas. It is critical that people working with young children and their families understand the differences along this continuum and across developmental stages. Across the early childhood age continuum, care and instruction is delivered in a variety of settings. The most common types of services include center-based child care; center- and school-based preschool; licensed, home-based family child care; and unlicensed family, friend, and neighbor care. Within these settings, depending largely on cultural beliefs and values about child development, approaches to the learning needs and care of children vary greatly. For example, some programs are driven by a particular philosophy, such as Montessori, Waldorf, constructivist, and Reggio Emilia, while others have no stated philosophy but may focus on a
4

National Research Council and Institute of Medicine, From Neurons to Neighborhoods: The Science of Early Childhood Development. Jack Shonkoff and Deborah A. Phillips, Eds. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 2000; Shore, R. (1997). Rethinking the brain: New insights into early development. New York: Families and Work Institute; Thompson, R. (2001). Development in the First Years of Life. The Future of Children, 11(1), pp. 20-33.

ECEC Sectors in the United States

Department of Education (DOE)

Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)

School-based sectors Other

Center-based sectors

Home-based sectors

- Head Startb - Nursery Schools - Child Care Centers - Preschools - Early Intervention - Private Home Care - Group Child Care Homes - Family Child Care Homes

- Public school Primary grades Kindergarten Pre-Kindergartena

- Care provided by religious organizations - Employersponsored onsite care

- Nonpublic school Primary grades Kindergarten Pre-Kindergartena

- Preschool Special Educationb

- Before- and afterschool care

Figure 1. ECEC sectors in the United States

--- Though some sectors (e.g., before- and after-school care) are housed in public schools, their staff may be subject to DHHS regulations. a Funded and administered by each state government. May use center-based programs to deliver services. b Funded and monitored by federal government. Can also be delivered through Head Start home-based program option or home visits.

(reprinted from Cho, E. K., & Couse, L. J. (2008). Early Childhood Teacher Policy in the United States: Continuing Issues, Overcoming Barriers, and Envisioning the Future. International Journal of Child Care and Education requirements(2), pp.most EC sectors, increasing the describe: (a) demographic profile of Americas Policy, Vol. 2 in 15-30.)

complexity of the system, there is also a conflicting push to restrict the supply of teachers to only those teachers who are highly qualified (Tarrant,

ECEC teaching force, (b) regulatory status regarding entrylevel teacher requirements, (c) condition of pre-service teacher training in higher education institutions, and

Table 1: Average annual wages by staff role, program type and setting, and typical education level*

Program type & setting Degrees and credentials/Average annual wages Role/position Asst. Teacher Teacher Director or administrator Center-based Head Start and Early High school diploma CDA/$22,566; B.A. or higher/$68,892 Head Start or higher/$18,912 B.A./$29.440; Advanced degree/$35,030 Early Head Start home-based visitor CDA or equivalent/$27,493 Head Start and Early Head Start CDA or equivalent/$28,260 family child care Center-based child care High school diploma High school diploma B.A. or higher/$43,830 or higher/$20,870 or higher/$25,530 Family child care High school diploma or higher/$19,330 Center-based public preschool CDA or Associates or B.A. or higher/$52,250 equivalent/$20,870 higher/$28,456 School-based public preschool CDA or B.A. or higher/$42,150 Masters or higher/$73,210 Associates/$20,870$25,120 Public school kindergarten Associates/$25,120 B.A. or higher/$52,660 (school principal) Masters or higher/$90,150 Public school elementary grades Associates/$25,120 B.A. or higher/$54,360 (school principal) Masters or higher/$90,150

All Head Start/Early Head Start data are from the 2010-2011 Head Start Program Information Report (PIR); all other data are from the 2010 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment Statistics. Education levels listed are assumed to be typical for these particular roles, settings, and salary levels; they do not necessarily reflect required credentials. Using BLS data for child care workers in child day care services industry, which does not distinguish between home- and center-based settings. No salary information in BLS for this subset, so estimate is higher than that for center-based preschool and lower than that for kindergarten and elementary grade teacher assistants.

particular curriculum (e.g. Creative Curriculum, High Scope); and still many others combine elements from several approaches. Given the variety of settings in which young children learn and grow and the different methods for meeting their unique needs across these settings, it can be quite challenging to ideally prepare teachers to work with all young children and their families.

Who provides early childhood care and education services?

The majority of practitioners enter the field as teaching assistants or classroom aidespositions that typically require just a high school diploma or GED and perhaps a few hours of formal training or education in child development or early childhood education. Overall, less than a third of the current teaching workforce in early childhood educationspanning home-based, center-based, and school-based care settingshas any postsecondary educational experiences. Many practitioners may pursue higher education and credentials as a means of advancing their careers or, in many cases, to keep their existing jobs as requirements continue to change. Often, however, they face difficulties in higher education programs because they lack sufficient academic preparation for the rigor of college-level course work. Moreover, many lack the material and social resources necessary to support their academic pursuits: 19% live at least 200% below the federal poverty level, many have low literacy skills or low English language proficiency, and most work long hours with few or no benefits.5 ECE practitioners are among the lowest paid workers in the United States, falling behind those working in the fields of housekeeping and food services. 6 Average wages for entry-level practitioners, such as classroom aides and teacher assistants, fall somewhere in the range of $8$10 per hour, and for preschool teachers between $9 and $15 per hour.7 Wages are considerably higher for lead teachers in state prekindergarten programs (among them, highest for those working in public schools), and nearly two thirds of them hold bachelors degrees; but these teachers represent only a small fraction of the ECE teaching workforce (see Table 1).8 Finally, racial and ethnic minority teachersmany of whom bring the valued resource of being better able to draw on community resources since they tend to come from and live in the communities where they teachare severely and increasingly overrepresented in support roles and underrepresented in more senior roles in the current workforce. This is potentially problematic since, although children in ECE programs come from diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds and vary greatly in terms of SES, it is estimated that greater than two thirds of lead teachers are white, 99% are female, and most are from middle-class backgrounds.9 Besides having first-hand knowledge about community
Kagan, S.L., Kauerz, K., Tarrant, K. (2008). The early care and education teaching workforce at the fulcrum: An agenda for reform. New York: Teachers College Press; Saluja, G., Early, D.M., & Clifford, R.M. (2002). Demographic characteristics of early childhood teachers and structural elements of early care and education in the United States. Early Childhood Research & Practice, 4(1), 2-21 6 Kagan et al., 2008. 7 American Federation of Teachers, www.aft.org 8 Kagan et al., 2008. 9 Ray, A., Bowman, B., Robbins, J. (2006). Preparing early childhood teachers to successfully educate all children: the contribution of four-year undergraduate teacher preparation. New York, NY: Foundation for Child Development; Saluja et al., 2002.
5

ECE program enrollment in Illinois

According to the 2010 Census data, there are approximately 13 million people living in Illinois; of these, 6.5% or more than 836,000 are under 5 years of age. Who cares for the children while their parents or primary care givers are working outside the home? Many of these children are being cared for in license-exempt and unregulated friend, family, and neighbor care, but it is difficult to estimate specific numbers. Figures 2A and 2B, below, provide estimates of the number of children being served in licensed, regulated public and private settings in Illinois.

Child Care Type Comparison # of children who attend

100000
50000 0

76,782 34,310 33,052

PFA Head Start

20,144

Private Family CC Homes

Program Type

Figure 2.A Comparison of Child Care program enrollment in Illinois Source: Illinois Action for Children Care Data 2007

20144 Centers Family Child Care Homes 101380

Figure 2.B Number of children served in Center-based care vs Family Child Care Homes in Illinois Source: Illinois Action for Children Care Data 2007
5

values, challenges, and resources, teachers from backgrounds similar to those of the children and families whom they serve can have positive impacts on the childrens identities, esteem, and even academic achievement.10 Moreover, these teachers may face fewer barriers in communicating with families from within the host community.

Considering the broader policy context

There are three overlapping policy areas that we take into consideration for this work: education policy, workforce policy, and child and family policy. Key issues in each of these areas have significant implications for what ECE teachers need to know and be able to do, how they are trained, how they are hired and retained, how they do their work, and, ultimately, how they factor in young childrens academic achievement and overall development. This is also true for elementary and secondary teacher preparation, but to a lesser extent. Whereas K12 education traditionally takes place in schools and provides instruction for children ages five to 18 years in basic academic skills and content, the ECE landscape is much more complex and varied. Thus, effective models for preparing teachers to work across the various ECE settings must move beyond mimicking those designed to prepare teachers to work with children in elementary and secondary school classrooms.

Education policy
Education policy as it relates to early childhood education is largely concerned with improving teacher quality and effectiveness, ensuring young children are ready for school, and closing achievement gapsall deriving from the accountability movement in education reform.11 First, although the research evidence on the relation between college degrees and teaching effectiveness is inconclusive, there is a steady push among policymakers and program leaders to require a bachelors degree for ECE teachers.12 Similarly, as interest in pre-K through third-grade initiatives continues to grow, there is a concomitant increasing demand for certified teachers who can teach across this continuum within publicly funded elementary schools.13 Second, ECE teachers are carrying the full burden of ensuring that young children are ready for schoolthat they enter kindergarten with the skills seen as necessary for their success in the classroom and, ultimately, that will lead to their successful completion of school. As a result, efforts to link
Dee, T. S. (2004). Teachers race and student achievement in a randomized experiment. The Review of Economics and Statistics, 86(1), 195-210. 11 Winton, P. J., & MCollum, J.A. (2008). Preparing and supporting high quality early childhood practitioners: Issues, evidence and recommendations. In P. Winton, J. McCollum, & C. Catlett (Eds.). Effective professionals: Evidence and applications in early childhood and early intervention. Washington, DC: Zero to Three Press. 12 Bueno, M. Darling-Hammond, L., & Gonzales, D. (2010). A matter of degrees: Preparing teachers for the Pre-K classroom. Washington, DC: Pre-K Now, Pew Center on the States; Edie, D. (2007). Policy BriefMaking the Grade: making the case for well-educated, well-trained teaching staff in early care and education. Madison, WI: Wisconsin Council for Children and Families; Whitebrook, M. (2003). Early education quality: Higher teacher qualifications for better learning environmentsa review of the literature. Berkley, CA: Institute of Industrial Relations; Whitebrook, M., & Ryan, S. (Apr 2011). Degrees in context: Asking the right questions about preparing skilled and effective teachers of young children. New Brunswick, NJ: National Institute for Early Education Research. 13 Hernandez, D. J., (2011). Double jeopardy: How third-grade reading skills and poverty influence high school graduation. The Annie E. Casey Foundation; Reynolds, A., Magnuson, K., & Ou, S. (2006). PK-3 education: Programs and practices that work in childrens first decade. Foundation for Child Development Working Paper: Advancing PK-3, No. 6.
10

Key issues in education policy, workforce policy, and child and family policy have significant implications for what ECE teachers need to know and be able to do, how they are trained, how they are hired and retained, how they do their work, and, ultimately, how they factor in young childrens academic achievement and overall development.

K12 teacher practices and characteristics to individual student growth in learning and achievement have now begun to trickle down to the ECE classroom. The challenge for early childhood educators is, of course, even more complicated given the difficulties of developing reliable assessments for young children.14 Finally, national education reform efforts continue to focus heavily on reducing and eliminating achievement gaps, particularly among ethnic/racial minorities and along socioeconomic class lines. Since these gaps exist before children enter preschool, a large portion of the burden to reduce these gaps again falls to the early childhood educator.

Workforce policy
Issues in workforce policy include low compensation and a perception of early childhood teaching as a low-skill vocation rather than a profession, poor working conditions, and uneven entry requirements based on program type and funding source. There are reports that as many as 70% of teachers in state prekindergarten programsthe highest paid professionals in the ECE teaching workforcereport salaries that qualify as low-income.15 Overall, compensation varies widely across states and depends on the source of program funding and regulation, with state prekindergarten paying the highest salaries. In addition to receiving low wages for their work, ECE teachers also frequently experience poor working conditions, such as a lack of classroom resources, low human resource capacity, longer hours, and year-round instructional schedules. These issues of poor compensation and working conditions are somewhat interdependent with issues around raising requirements for ECE teachers. Specifically, while increasing requirements has the potential to professionalize the fieldincluding raising overall compensation and improving working conditionsthe majority of the current workforce faces substantial barriers in meeting these raised requirements. All of these problems can lead to the perpetuation of a racially/culturally and socio-economically stratified workforce wherein members of racial/ethnic minority groups and those who have less social and economic capital are relegated to nonteaching, support roles in ECE settings. Typically, ECE practitioners first embark on their pursuit of postsecondary education to obtain the Child Development Associate (CDA) credential, the most widely accepted credential in early childhood education. Earning the CDA helps practitioners meet requirements for more senior positions or positions in settings where work conditions are better and compensation is higher (for example, moving from a classroom at a community-based organization to a school-based Head Start classroom). But even after obtaining the CDA, many entry-level practitioners still find it difficult and sometimes impossible to advance to roles such as lead teacher or director. Increasingly, ECE practitioners in support roles are finding that they will need to obtain formal degrees and credentials in order to earn higher compensation and advance their careers (see Table 2).
See, for example, The Kindergarten Readiness Assessment Stakeholder Committee of the Illinois State Board of Education (2011). A new beginning: The Illinois Kindergarten Individual Development Survey. 15 Fowler, S., Bloom, P. J., Talan, T. N., Beneke, S., & Kelton, R. (2008). Whos caring for the kids? The status of the early childhood workforce in Illinois2008. McCormick Tribune Center for Early Childhood Leadership, National Louis University; Kagan et al., 2008; Saluja et al., 2002.
14

Table 2: Early childhood credentials and degrees

CDA Degree Description(s) The Child Development Associate credential is a nationally recognized, competency-based, early childhood credential, granted to qualified candidates by the Council for Professional Recognition. Requirements include experience, education, and documentation of competency.1 AAT- The Associate of Arts in Teaching degree offers courses required for transfer to a four-year college or university. This degree is based on the Illinois Professional Teaching standards and included IAI General Education Core Curriulum.2 AAS- The Associate in Applied Science degrees (A.A.S.) and related occupational certificate programs are designed for students primarily interested in acquiring technical/occupational skills in order to enter the job market.2 A B.A. in ECE or Child Development offers coursework leading students to a career working as a Head Teacher in a Head Start classroom or in an administrative type positions in the field. A B.S. in ECE with certification requires similar course work of those seeking a B.A.. However, to obtain certification students must pass both the Basic Skills Exam, the Content Knowledge exam and complete a culminating experience, typically a semester practical experience as a student teacher. A Masters degree in Early Childhood education provides advanced studies in the field. Some students take this opportunity to specialize in one content area while seeking this degree. Graduate degree with certification Who seeks these degrees? The child development associate credential acts as a stepping stone to further early childhood credentialing.

2-Year Associates degree

Although not exclusively, many ECE professionals seeking an AAT or AAS are currently working in an early childhood center or classroom, but are required to further their education. Early childhood funders, such as Illinois Pre-school for all and Head Start, have increased teacher and teacher assistant credentials for those being paid from these resources. These increases created an incentive for those working in ECE classrooms to further their education. Students seeking a bachelors degree in Early Childhood education or Child Development seek to work with young children and their families. Obtaining certification enables the student to work in a public school setting (pre-k- grade 3) or as a Type 04 certified teacher in an Illinois PreSchool for All classroom.

4-Year-Bachelors degree

Graduate Degree

There are many reasons to seek a graduate degree in Early Childhood Education. A career changer who already holds a B.A. or B.S. degree in another field may decide they are interested in working with young children and seek a graduate degree in the ECE field. (Initial certification) Another route includes students who already work in the field. These students are often interested in specializing in one particular area, such as administration or to become a reading specialist. (advanced certification)

Alternative Certification Gateways to Opportunity Career Lattice: Illinois Professional Development System Professional Development

Students seeking a graduate degree can chose whether they are also interested in seeking certification Alternative certification programs offer individuals who hold a bachelors degree or higher an expedited route to certification. The career lattice provides a leveled progression of ECE competency for students to achieve. Beginning with level one, credentialing is awarded upon completion of 48 hours of early childhood training. The culminating credential, level 6, occurs with the achievement of a graduate degree. In addition to completing the ECE credential or separately, students have the opportunity to specialize their knowledge to obtain the Illinois Directors credential and/or the Infant Toddler credential. Staying current on research and happenings in the field is imperative for classroom teachers success. Whether ECE teachers are certified or hold a B.A. they are required to obtain continuing education credits/hours. The regulating body/funding source determines how many hours per year are required. The Early Childhood field is fortunate and plagued by the array of different PD opportunities available. The various opportunities provide teachers with an array of experiences and opportunities to build necessary teaching skills. However, the PD experiences are often unrelated to each other and do not translate into college credit.

The portion of the postsecondary student population that is made up of entrylevel ECE practitioners tends to be older than traditional college students, to work full-time for low pay, to have families, to be heads-of-households, and to have lower levels of literacy and other academic skills as compared to other students.16 Consequently, they are faced with balancing family, work, and school obligations, as well as mastering challenging academic material with insufficient preparation and support. These challenges prevent most ECE students, particularly in community colleges, from successfully matriculating through their programs. Even those who successfully matriculate can often take several years to complete the requirements for the degree. Most are enrolled in school only part-time, often experience interruptions in their enrollment, and frequently lose credits for completed work because they transfer to a different institution when they resume their education. All of these problems are exacerbated by the low wages they earn for the demanding work with which they are charged, subjecting them to the threat of being near or in persistent poverty.

Child and family policy

Issues in child and family policy include initiatives that link supports for young children with supports for their families, meeting the needs of the whole child versus focusing solely on cognitive development and academic achievement, and closing gaps before children enter classrooms. Examples of these types of initiatives include home-visit programs, such as the Nurse-Family Partnership, which sends certified nurses into the homes of low-income pregnant teenagers and first-time mothers to teach them about child development and support them in caring for their prenatal to five-year-old children. Though comprehensive and not housed in or regulated by education authorities, the program is hailed as an effective approach to closing achievement gaps. Similarly, Head Start programs were designed to meet the needs of the whole child but often are criticized for not focusing heavily enough on cognitive development and academic achievement. Such policies have strong implications for how we prepare ECE teachers. For example, while bachelors degree programs that lead to certification tend to be housed in schools of education and focus on teaching subject matter, associates degree programs tend to be housed in family studies or human development departments and focus on childrens healthy growth and development. A whole child perspective implies integration across these two approaches. We have only touched on some of the many implications these broader, overlapping policies can have for the where, what, and how of ECE teacher education. This policy context has informed our work in AECTP-IL and provided us with a sense about what policies need to be in place in order to advance any action plan that may come of that work. The greatest challenge to implementation is that the players who are in the position to effect change are unknown or rarely are at the table. We are hopeful that the recent collaboration between the U.S. Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services to form the federal Office of Early Learning will facilitate implementation of some of the solutions we propose for improving ECE teacher preparation here in Illinois and throughout the nation.
16

Klostermann, 2010; Kagan et al., 2008.

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Preparing high-quality, highly effective early childhood education teachers: What, where, why, and how?
Although research on ECE teacher preparation has received increased attention in the past two or three decades, most of this work is largely descriptive. The extant research provides important information about where teachers receive their training and what it consists of, but less is known about the components, features, structure, and design of preparation programs or their effectiveness. For example, little research has examined what models of instructional delivery work best for teacher candidates or what role preparation plays in the effectiveness of teacher practices in supporting young childrens learning and development. The AACTE Focus Council on Early Childhood Education concluded from its work that there are four key challenges facing schools, colleges, and departments of education:17 What should admission policies encompass to welcome diverse teachers and also ensure high standards? How can we standardize the preparation and credentialing of ECE teachers so that ECE program quality is consistent from class to class and from school to school? What are the common expectations across the multiple types of early childhood care and education programs? What are basic program components? How can they be organized?

Indeed, this set of questions reflects issues commonly noted in research on ECE teacher preparation. For example, as we describe in some detail elsewhere in this report, the field is criticized for setting standards too lowboth for entry into teacher education programs and into the workforce; there is a concern, however, that raising requirements can disproportionately impede access to higher education, credentials, and, hence, career opportunities for some subpopulations. This is problematic in and of itself, but also because it contributes to an imbalanced, incongruent teaching workforce vis--vis the populations that fill our nations ECE settings and classrooms. Similarly, research has indicated that preparation is inconsistent across postsecondary programs; despite the existence of teaching standards for ECE practitioners, support for teacher practices taught in postsecondary programs varies across settings; and there are few models for how best to prepare ECE teachers, given the complexity of the field.

Where and why: features and goals of preparation programs

As we describe in greater detail next, the vast majority of ECE teachers (especially in child-care settings) receive most of their training in-service; that is, they enter the workforce with little or no experience and no formal education, but while working they continually participate in workshops and other training in child development and early childhood care and education practices. As a result, there
17

AACTE, 2004

12

There are multiple points of entry and exit in ECE teacher preparation programs: preservice (no experience) and in-service; early career, midcareer, or nearretirement; for nondegree-granting professional development credits, formal credentials, or postsecondary and advanced degrees.

are multiple points of entry into ECE teacher preparation programs in institutions of higher education. Some students enter programs through the traditional postsecondary route with no experience or prior knowledge in child development or early childhood care and education; others enter with some experience but no formal training; and still others enter with no formal education but several years of experience and on-the-job training. There are multiple exit points as well. Some seek training and nondegree professional development credits on a specific topic; some seek a minimum certificate in early childhood care and education; and some seek associates, bachelors, or advanced degrees and state licensing or certification. As a result, a variety of programs is needed to accommodate the unique situation of ECE teacher preparation. Still, it is presumed that programs share some common goals and features. Where do teachers receive their training? Unlike elementary and secondary teacher preparation programs, which typically are housed in colleges of education or in schools of arts and sciences, ECE teacher preparation programs are housed in a variety of settings both inside and outside of institutions of higher education. Within institutions of higher education, programs are housed most often in colleges of education, but also in departments of child or human development, family and consumer sciences, arts and sciences, and others. Outside of higher education, ECE teacher preparation and development is offered by private businesses and corporations, boards of education, community-based organizations, faith-based institutions, child-care and early learning program providers, museums and other public educational and cultural institutions, and a host of other entities. Here we limit our discussion to higher educationbased programs and what they entail but conclude by suggesting that ECE teacher preparation can be improved through better partnerships between highereducation and other entities involved in teacher preparation and development. According to a comprehensive study conducted by researchers at the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, there are about 1,300 higher education based ECE teacher preparation programs throughout the nation (roughly 70 or so in Illinois).18 Estimates indicated that more than half of these are two-year programs and do not lead to certification. More than half of the programs offer an associates degree (primarily the AAS), while fewer than 30% offer an advanced degree. In terms of program content, there was little to no consistency. Across 19 content areas, there was no incidence of greater than 70% agreement across programs in requiring an entire course or more except for education and care of preschool children (although nearly all programs addressed all 19 content areas to some extent). Many ECE teacher preparation programs are challenged by extremely low staff capacity. Some programs have just a single full-time faculty member, and most rely heavily on adjunct instructional staff to teach courses and mentor students in the field. The few full-time faculty in these programs are spread thin with administrative, teaching, and sometimes research responsibilities, as well as mentoring and supervision of students. Therefore, they lack the time and resources for continued professional development, which is crucial since most faculty at four-year institutions typically do not hold degrees in early childhood
18

Maxwell, K. L., Lim, C-I, & Early, D. M. (2006). Early childhood teacher preparation programs in the United States: State report for Illinois. Chapel Hill, NC: The University of North Carolina, Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute.

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education or development and many lack direct experience working with young children. On the other hand, faculty at two-year institutions are less likely to hold a doctoral degree, but their degrees are more likely to be in early childhood education or development and most began their careers working directly with young children and their families. Faculty at both types of institutions are overwhelmingly white (about 80%), middle class and female (more than 90%), and on average have little knowledge about or experience with children and families from diverse backgrounds.19 What are the goals of teacher preparation? All programs should prepare teachers, at the most fundamental level, in best practices in direct care and education in these settings and in various roles: educator, home-family support, and professional support. According to NAEYC, programs should instill in students of early childhood education the professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions in a community of learners making sense of readings, observations, field experiences, and group projects through their interactions with others (p. 5).20 Thus, a common goal among ECE teacher preparation programs is to produce high-quality, highly effective teachers who can apply knowledge to their practice in working with young children ages zero to eight years and their families from diverse backgrounds across a variety of settings. Issues pertaining to teacher qualitywhich many agree is essential to ensuring young children receive highquality early education experiencesabound in this era of accountability in education reform. There are questions, however, around what a high-quality ECE teacher looks like and concerns about inequities in access to higher-education programs that award the credentials that designate a teacher as highly qualified. In the course of teachers becoming more and more central to discussions of education reform, quality has become confounded with qualifications and definitions have become muddleddue in part to language in the 2001 No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation. Citing research on teacher qualifications and student outcomes, the act mandated that teachers hired with Title I funds must meet high quality specifications. The law defines a highly qualified teacher as one who is a) fully certified and/or licensed by the state; b) holds at least a bachelors degree from a four-year institution; and c) demonstrates competence in each core academic subject area in which the teacher teaches.21 This definition is problematic for ECE teachers, since these requirements apply only to those working in public school settings governed by state boards of education. Even within public-school settings, every district, school, classroom, and child presents unique contributions to what high quality teaching looks like in that particular setting. Quality might also be defined by the way it has been operationalized. State boards of education and other regulating entities have tried to standardize requirements for high-quality ECE teachers. In Illinois in order to earn a Type 04 (early childhood) teaching certificate, the State Board of Education (ISBE) requires that students complete an accredited teacher preparation program. Institutions can obtain accreditation from ISBE by aligning their curriculums with the Illinois Professional
Whitebrook et al., 2009 National Association for the Education of Young Children (2009). NAEYC Standards for Early Childhood Professional Preparation Programs. 21 United States Department of Education (2004). NCLB: A Toolkit for Teachers.
19 20

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A high-quality or highly-qualified ECE teacher would need to understand that the various types of care and education across the birth to third grade range require distinct environments, curricula, and methods of instruction in order to best nurture childrens learning.

Teaching Standards (IPTS) and the respective content standards for the certificate. The Illinois standards for early childhood education are partially aligned with the 2010 NAEYC standards for initial and advanced early childhood professional preparation programs, approved by NCATE. In addition, accredited programs must have an assessment system by which teacher candidates demonstrate that they meet both IPTS and content area standards. The assessment system includes the Illinois Early Childhood content exam, the Illinois Assessment of Professional Teaching Standards exam (APT), as well as a standards-based assessment completed by school site personnel and at least three other performance assessments developed by the program and approved by ISBE. Illinois is currently pilot-testing the Teacher Performance Assessment Consortium tool (T-PAC) that is expected to be required of all accredited programs. Nationally, non-certification programs seeking NAEYC accreditation at the associates, bachelors, and masters/advanced levels are expected to demonstrate that students graduating from their programs demonstrate proficiency in NAEYCs six core standards (see Table 3). After graduating from an institution of higher education that aligns its programs to the NAEYC Professional Preparation Standards, the beginning ECE teacher should: 1. have a broad and thorough understanding of development from birth through age eight, including an understanding of the importance of families and communities to young childrens development, 2. have the skills necessary to build developmentally effective approaches and meaningful curriculum as well as the know-how to use assessment to support children and families, and 3. know what it means and how it looks to act as a professional in the field. In Illinois, students who hold a bachelors degree or higher and meet other ISBE requirements are entitled to receive the Illinois ECE teaching certificate (Type 04), which certifies them to teach in settings and classrooms with children ages birth through the third grade. But the developmental gains and needs of children within this broad age grouping are vastly different, breaking out roughly into three distinct phases of development: infants and toddlers, preschoolers, and early elementary grades. Infants and toddlers being cared for in a rural community center require a teacher with different sets of knowledge, skills, and dispositions than one who teaches children in a third-grade classroom in a downtown charter schoolyet ECE teachers certified by the State of Illinois are presumed to be prepared to teach this entire age range regardless of setting. A high-quality or highly-qualified teacher would need to understand that the various types of care and education across the birth to third grade range require distinct environments, curricula, and methods of instruction in order to best nurture childrens learning. Currently, there is no standard way to ensure quality defined this way, which presents complex issues for colleges of education, community colleges, and other organizations involved with preparing educators for ECE settings.

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Table 3:
2010 NAEYC Initial and Advanced Standards: 6 Core Standards Standard
STANDARD 1. PROMOTING CHILD DEVELOPMENT AND LEARNING

Key Elements
1a: Knowing and understanding young childrens characteristics and needs, from birth through age 8. 1b: Knowing and understanding the multiple influences on early development and learning 1c: Using developmental knowledge to create healthy, respectful, supportive, and challenging learning environments for young children 2a: Knowing about and understanding diverse family and community characteristics 2b: Supporting and engaging families and communities through respectful, reciprocal relationships 2c: Involving families and communities in young childrens development and learning 3a: Understanding the goals, benefits, and uses of assessment including its use in development of appropriate goals, curriculum, and teaching strategies for young children 3b: Knowing about and using observation, documentation, and other appropriate assessment tools and approaches, including the use of technology in documentation, assessment and data collection. 3c: Understanding and practicing responsible assessment to promote positive outcomes for each child, including the use of assistive technology for children with disabilities. 3d: Knowing about assessment partnerships with families and with professional colleagues to build effective learning environments. 4a: Understanding positive relationships and supportive interactions as the foundation of their work with young children 4b: Knowing and understanding effective strategies and tools for early education, including appropriate uses of technology 4c: Using a broad repertoire of developmentally appropriate teaching /learning approaches 4d: Reflecting on own practice to promote positive outcomes for each child 5a: Understanding content knowledge and resources in academic disciplines: language and literacy; the arts music, creative movement, dance, drama, visual arts; mathematics; science, physical activity, physical education, health and safety; and social studies. 5b: Knowing and using the central concepts, inquiry tools, and structures of content areas or academic disciplines 5c: Using own knowledge, appropriate early learning standards, and other resources to design, implement, and evaluate developmentally meaningful and challenging curriculum for each child. 6a: Demonstrating professional identification with and leadership skills in the early childhood field to think strategically, build consensus, create change, effectively collaborate with and mentor others, and have a positive influence on outcomes for children, families and the profession. 6b: In-depth understanding and thoughtful application of NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct and other professional guidelines relevant to their professional role 6c: Using professional resources, inquiry skills and research methods to engage in continuous, collaborative learning and investigation relevant to practice and professional role. 6d: Integrating knowledgeable, reflective, and critical perspectives on early education based upon mastery of relevant theory and research 6e: Engaging in informed advocacy for children and the profession, skillfully articulating and advocating for sound professional practices and public policies. 6f. Demonstrating a high level of oral, written and technological communication skills with specialization for specific professional role(s) emphasized in the program

STANDARD 2. BUILDING FAMILY AND COMMUNITY RELATIONSHIPS

STANDARD 3. OBSERVING, DOCUMENTING, AND ASSESSING TO SUPPORT YOUNG CHILDREN AND FAMILIES

STANDARD 4. USING DEVELOPMENTALLY EFFECTIVE APPROACHES

STANDARD 5. USING CONTENT KNOWLEDGE TO BUILD MEANINGFUL CURRICULUM

STANDARD 6. GROWING AS A PROFESSIONAL

Many ECE teachers work in the communities where they live and, therefore, bring into their classrooms a wealth of community cultural knowledge, but many of them have not had the opportunity to acquire more formal knowledge about child development and childrens learning.

Highly effective teaching is even more difficult to demonstrate. While quality refers to the qualifications, characteristics, knowledge, skills, and dispositions teachers should possess, effectiveness refers to their demonstrated ability to apply these attributes in ways that positively affect students learning outcomes. Currently, there is an ongoing national debate around the merits of using value-added statistical methods to assess teachers effectiveness, defined as their impact on student learning gains. Put simply, value-added methods link student outcomes on standardized tests to teacher practices and characteristics, attributing average learning gains (test score increase) across students assigned to that teacher to effective teaching. Controversial even for elementary and secondary teachers, this approach is especially troubling for ECE settings. Because development between the ages of zero and five years, in particular, is so rapid and varies greatly across individuals, assessments for children this age are highly unreliable.22 Hence, any attempt to link teachers to these unreliable assessments would likewise yield unreliable estimates of teachers effectiveness. Finally, teacher preparation programs in institutions of higher education seek to produce teachers who are committed to serving young and very young children and their families as a career. Retaining the best teachers in early childhood care and education programs remains problematic since wages are notoriously low and working conditions so poor, with turnover estimated at around 30% across the nation.23 For those who do remain in the field, opportunities for professional advancement are not so clear or accessible to many. Responding to this problem, many states have begun to build and implement professional development systems. For example, in Illinois, the Gateways career lattice for ECE professionals, linked to NAEYC standards, education, and training and years of experience in the field (see Figure 3), specifies expectations and requirements for individuals occupying roles from classroom aide to center director; teachers can earn state-recognized credentials to show that they meet these expectations and requirements. These systems can help ECE practitioners at all levels chart their professional pathways within the field, providing clear information about what they would need to do to be eligible for particular roles and positions. Professional development systems afford the added benefit of enhancing retention in early childhood care and education since they present options and mechanisms for professional advancement and even lateral mobility. But another factor in retention is support and mentoring for new teachers. As former preschool teacher and New America Foundation policy analyst and blogger, Laura Bornfreund, wrote in a recent online article, Factors that impelled me to leave: inadequate preparation and poor-quality professional development; lack of feedback on what I was doing well and where I could improve; meager time to plan and collaborate with fellow teachers; limited access to important data about students; and no foreseeable paths for career advancement. Other teachers agree.24
Atkins-Burnett, S. (2007). Measuring childrens progress from preschool through 3rd grade. Retrieved December 23, 2011, from http://www.pewtrusts.org/uploadedFiles/wwwpewtrustsorg/Reports/Pre-k_education/atkins-burnett%20final%20 apper%207-3-07.pdf 23 Midwest Child Care Research Consortium. Early childhood workforce retention rates: What factors impact the statistics? University of Missouri--Columbia, Center for Family Policy & Research. Retrieved May 19, 2009, from http://mucenter. missouri.edu/Retention1202.pdf 24 Bornfreund, L. (Dec 7, 2011). Do teachers care about pay? Yes, but not as much as you think. Slate. www.slate.com/blogs/ xx_factor/2011/12/07/teacher_pay_are_teachers_quitting_over_pay_or_over_policies_.html.
22

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Figure 3:

Gateways to Opportunity Career Lattice

Levels
Available Credentials: IDC III In development: ECE 6 / ITC 6

Graduate Degree

Content Areas
Available Credentials: ECE 5 / ITC 5 / IDC II

Bachelors Degree

Human Growth and Development Health, Safety and Well-Being

Associates Degree
Available Credentials: ECE 4 / ITC 4 / IDC I

Observation and Assessment Curriculum or Program Design

Available Credentials: ECE 3 / ITC 3

18 Semester hours in ECE

Interactions, Relationships and Environments Family and Community Relationships

Available Credentials: ECE 2 / ITC 2

12 Semester hours in ECE

Level

Personal and Professional Development

PD97a 2010 INCCRRA

Credentials Key: IDC: Illinois Director Credential ECE Credential ITC: Infant Toddler Credential Each Credential has specific requirements. For more information, visit www.ilgateways.com.

6 5 4 3 2 1

48 hour Level 1 ECE Training Available Credential: ECE 1

Revised 9/2010

1226 Towanda Plaza | Bloomington, Illinois 61701 | Telephone: (866) 697-8278 | www.ilgateways.com

Gateways to Opportunity is administered through INCCRRA and funded by the Illinois Department of Human Services Bureau of Child Care and Development, the McCormick Foundation and Grand Victoria Foundation.

This is true for elementary and secondary teachers, as well; but again, the issue is more complicated for ECE teachers since they work with children spanning the three developmental stages within early childhood, as well as their families, and across a variety of settings. Two to four years of course work and limited fieldwork is insufficient to prepare teachers for the limitless idiosyncrasies they will undoubtedly encounter in their classrooms, so they need high-quality and consistent mentoring and support from competent, experienced teachers in order to succeed. Thus far we have described the what and the who of early childhood education: it serves the cognitive, social-emotional, and other distinct developmental needs of children ages zero to eight years, through effective instruction and care by teachers who understand how young children develop and learn. In the next section, we describe what is known so far about how ECE teachers are prepared, including promising models for in-service teachers who want to enhance their knowledge, skills, and effective practices and, ultimately, advance their careers.

ECE involves a specific and unique body of knowledge, practice, and attitudes that must be included in the curricula of prospective ECE teachers. ECE pedagogy is distinct from other education disciplines. --AACTE, 2004

How are early childhood education teachers prepared?

ECE teacher preparation is vastly different from elementary teacher preparation. First, the line between preservice preparation and in-service professional development is not as pronounced for early childhood education as it is for K12. Whereas all elementary and secondary teachers typically must hold a bachelors degree and be board certified before they can teach full-time, ECE teachers typically work full-time in early care and education settings before seeking postsecondary education of any sort. Moreover, when ECE teachers first seek postsecondary opportunities, it usually is to enhance their knowledge of a particular topic, build and improve their skills, or earn professional development creditas opposed to seeking a formal degree or certification. Second, ECE teacher preparation focuses largely on child development and the family context and, in bachelors degree programs, pedagogy and perhaps topics in early literacy. In elementary and secondary teacher preparation, on the other hand, less attention is given to child development and even less on the family context, with much of the curriculum being devoted to academic content, foundations, and pedagogy.25 According to the AACTE focus council on early education (2004), ECE involves a specific and unique body of knowledge, practice, and attitudes which must be included in the curricula of prospective ECE teachers. ECE pedagogy is distinct from other education disciplines (p. 7). Early learning experiences provide the foundation for childrens later success in multiple life domains: academic, social, emotional, interpersonal, and occupational, among the most salient. And as the landscape of contemporary family living continues to evolve, more and more young children spend some time being cared for by people other than their parents or primary caregivers. These out-of-home caregivers are charged with substantial responsibility to ensure the childrens needs are being met sufficiently. Because these early years are so critical, caring for young children requires a
25

NCATE (2010). The road less traveled: How the developmental sciences can prepare educators to improve student achievement; Whitebrook et al., 2009.

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broad set of skills and dispositions and a deep knowledge base about learning and development in early childhood. In contrast, elementary and secondary teachers should have a basic knowledge about child developmentnot just in early childhoodand, specifically, its implications for student learning and, hence, pedagogy. In addition, ECE teacher preparation differs from elementary and secondary preparation in a number of ways that stem from how the two systems are delivered, funded, and governed. Federal and state funding for public K12 education comes almost exclusively from the Department of Education, whereas the funding for early childhood care and education is much more disparate. Funding for early childhood education is provided through federal and state departments of education but also through departments of health and human services. Moreover, because K12 funding typically is channeled to schools through local educational agencies, such as Chicago Public Schools, funding formulas and administration are relatively simple as compared to those for ECE settings. In early childhood education, funding is channeled through various state and local agencies, each of which has its own set of regulations about how funds must be used. For example, in Illinois, federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) funds are channeled through the Illinois Department of Human Services, but also through the departments of Children and Family Services and the Chicago Department of Family and Support Services (see Table 4). Each of the agencies providing funding and administration for ECE services and programs determines the standards and requirements for personnel in the various ECE settings supported by their funds (see Figure 4). Thus, teachers who seek new positions or to advance their careers in early childhood education through postsecondary education will first have to decide which type of setting in which they wish to work. Although elementary and secondary teachers also have some choice about the type of setting in which they wish to work (e.g., a charter school or a neighborhood public school), the minimum requirement is fairly standard and straightforwardthey must earn a bachelors degree and board certification to teach either elementary or secondary grades. Moreover, there is one set of standards that is used to guide programs in preparing elementary and secondary grade teachersthose set forth by the state board of education. One result of this distinction is that elementary and secondary grade teachers have greater career mobility than ECE teachers, whose career tracks are sometimes constrained by their choice to work in a Head Start program, for example, as opposed to a public school preschool classroom. The former setting requires an associates degree (but will soon require a bachelors for its lead teachers) whereas the latter requires a bachelors degree and state certification in early childhood education. Components of programs. Most programs share a common set of core components that stem in part from published teaching standards and state licensing requirements: course work (content and sequencing), field study (observation and student teaching), coaching or mentoring and supervision, and student assessments (formative and/or exit). How these components are arranged and interrelated varies between programs, as does the specific content that is contained within the components. We provide greater detail on this topic and a few examples in the next section, on program design and structure.

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Ages EHS-Birth to Age three Program Standards Head Start Standards

Funding Head Start (HS) and Early Head Start (EHS)

Prevention Initiative

Illinois Early Learning Standards (IELS)

Pre-School for All

(IELS) (IELS)

Private Pre-School-Fee for Service

Early Childhood Education Matrix-Birth through Age Eight Governance Credentialing U.S. Department of Health and Human Service: By October 1, 2011 Head Start classrooms Administration for Children and Families must have a teacher who has the minimum of an associate degree in Early Childhood HS-Three to Education. Other equivalent degrees are Five years old accepted as long as the degree includes equivalent child development course work. Three-year waivers are granted if efforts to recruit qualified staff were unsuccessful. Birth-Age Early Childhood Block Grant (Illinois General Revenue Minimum of an Associates degree in Three Funds earmarked for Early Care and Education) Child Development or ECE & specialized college level course work &/or professional development training. By 2015 all Infant toddler teachers who have primary responsibility must hold a B.A. in CD or ECE & a Level V I/T credential. Three to Five Early Childhood Block Grant (Illinois General Revenue Teaching staff must hold a type 04 Years Funds earmarked for Early Care and Education) (formerly type 02) certificate before hire. Birth-age 13 Parent pay and Child Care Subsidy Centers must meet State Licensing requirements, but may set higher credentials for staff.*

HS/EHS Home Based and HS/EHS Family Birth to age 13 Parent Pay and Child Care subsidy

Birth to Age 13.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Service: Administration for Children and Families

Home Visitors must be versed in child development & ECE as well as communicating with and motivating people. Minimum Illinois DHS licensing standards.* N/A

Head Start Standards

Licensed providers

Child Care

IDHS Licensing standards

Fee for Service Family Friends or Neighbor Home Visitor Birth-Three Birth to age 13 Parent Pay and Child Care subsidy

Licenseexempt provider

Early Intervention

Illinois Department of Human Services

Early Intervention Specialist credential

Pre-School for All

(IELS) School specific (IELS)

Private K-Grade Three Public School-K-Grade Three Birth-Age 13

Three to Five years old Five-Eight Five-Eight

Early Childhood Block Grant (Illinois General Revenue Funds earmarked for Early Care and Education) Illinois State Board of Education Illinois State Board of Education

Teaching staff must hold a type 04 (formerly type 02) certificate before hire. School Specific Type 03 or Type 04 certification required

Center Based- Center based programming and governance varies greatly across settings. Licensed center based programs meet Illinois state licensing requirements, regulated by the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services. In terms of rigor, licensing standards are the least stringent. Programs that accept state and/or federal funding must also meet required administrative and classroom governing standards. Home Based- Many Illinois families rely on one of the home child care program models to care for and educate their young children. Many of these child care homes are formal licensed caregivers but others are license exempt. These environments provide an intimate environment for children as an alternative to center based pre-school. School Based-Many elementary schools operate both Preschool and K-third grade classrooms. Illinois Child Care Assistance Program(CCAP)-

Illinois Department of Human Services

Child Care subsidy provides low income, working families access to early care and education. This subsidy is paid to the provider of the clients choice.

Table 4 Table 4: Illinois Early Childhood Matrix

Sources: Illinois Pre School for All Implementation manual, ISBE Birth to three program standards/CPS Center-based prevention initiative model, Head Start Standard, Illinois Department of Human Services licensing standards

Figure 4: Early Care and Education in Illinois: Serving Children Age 3-5 years old
Funding Bodies of ECE programs* Head Start funding is appropriated by the federal government and the community in which the program is operated.
Licensed private-preschools must meet Illinois state licensing requirements, however many programs accept CCAP vouchers. These programs operate under the guidance of a governing body, often times a board of directors.

The Early Childhood Block Grant funds Pre-School for All In Illinois: These state funded dollars are filtered through ISBE except in Chicago. Chicago funds are filtered through CPS. This funding provides 2.5 hours per day of ECE programming, 5 days per week.

Program Sources and Teacher Requirements Center Based Center Based

Center Based

School Based

Family Child Care (FCC)

Home Based Child Care

Teacher: TYPE 04/44 Certification **

Teacher Assistant: 30 credit hours of college course work

Teacher: TYPE 04/44 Certification **

Teacher Assistant: 60 credit hours of college course work***

Teacher: Minimum of AA in ECE or related field. By 2013 50% of teachers nation-wide must hold a B.A. in ECE or related field. Associated Credentials B.A. in ECE or related field

Teacher Assistant: Minimum of CDA or enrolled in CDA program with intention to complete within 2 years ****

FCC workers must have previous early child care experience and, at a minimum must enroll in a CDA program, AA or BA/BS degree program in child development or EC within 6 months of beginning service.

Teacher: 60 semester hours with six semester hours in courses related directly to child care of child development or 1560 clock hours of child development

Teacher Assistant: A high school diploma or equivalent and work under the supervision of a teacher.

Providers must be 18 years old and be able to provide proof of a GED or High School Diploma.

B.S. ECE with Certification & other applicable endorsements AAS ECE AAS ECE

AAT ECE CDA

AAS ECE

AAT ECE

AAT ECE

CDA

CDA

High School Diploma or Equivalent

* CCAP (Child Care Assistance Program) is an state funded program that provides qualifying families monetary support to pay for child care. These funds are often used in conjunction with Head Start and PreSchool for All to provide full time services. ** Must have a minimum of BA/BS degree in order to earn a certificate. Additional endorsements may be required depending on the student population *** Or one of two stateapproved licenses: Workkeys or Parapro or obtain a paraprofessional license (or certificate) from ISBE **** Have a child development associate (CDA) credential; Be enrolled in a CDA credential program that will be completed within 2 years; or Have an associates or baccalaureate degree (in any area) or be en-

Figure 5 Pathways from degree to early care and education positions

Illinois to change structure of teacher certification and licensing

As the nation moves forward with implementing Common Core State Standards (CCSS) in K12 education, states are beginning to make changes to their teacher licensing and certification systems. In Illinois, for example, teachers currently are entitled to teach pre-K through third grade (Type 04), K9 (Type 03), and grades 912 (Type 09), at the most basic level (other certifications and endorsements exist for specialized areas). The state has announced, however, that it is overhauling its certification process and structure. Initially proposed changes called for revising the current K9 certificate to a K5 and a 68 endorsement on the state teaching license. This structure is problematic since it (a) does not consider that children in the early elementary grades require teachers who have specialized knowledge about child development and critical skills and dispositions that are unique to early childhood education and (b) narrows options for ECE teachers and for the assignment of teachers in the settings in which they work. The Illinois State Board of Education is reconsidering these changes now, largely in response to push-back from the ECE community. This push-back may have been avoided if there was better coordination and partnership across elementary and ECE planning and policy, with ECE practitioners being included in the initial discussion together with elementary-grade personnel. A special advisory group has been assembled at the state level to reexamine how the new state teaching license should be structured, in light of the pushback from the ECE community. Teacher preparation in early childhood education already struggles with the problem of not covering critical content in sufficient depth. The typical curriculum covers broad content in foundations of education, pedagogy, cultural and linguistic diversity, inclusion, and specialized content in child development. Moreover, early childhood care and education also encompasses the years from zero to three, before children enter preschool, and takes place in a variety of settings outside of publicly funded schools and classrooms. Certification and licensing structures that narrow the range to Pre-K pose the potential to adversely affect K3 childrens learning and development because teachers in those settings will be ill-prepared in critical content in child development and early learning. Conversely, structures that allow for broad overlap pose the potential to adversely affect young childrens learning and development because teachers preparation will not be able to focus on critical content with sufficient depth; overlapping structures tend to result in preparation programs that focus more on the grades at the middle of the range to the detriment of those at the ends.1 The Illinois Association for Early Childhood Teacher Educators (ILAECTE) strongly endorses a birth to eight years old structure for licensing and certification.

Bornfreund, L. A. (2011). Getting in sync: Revamping licensing and preparation for teachers in Pre-K, kindergarten, and the early grades. Washington, DC: New America Foundation.

Course work in ECE teacher preparation programs typically consists of foundational, pedagogical, and subject matter content.26 Foundational course work provides students with basic knowledge in educational theory, including the history and philosophy of education. Pedagogical courses focus on methods of teaching, including practices in classroom management, differentiated instruction, and content-specific teaching methods. Content in ECE teacher education typically focuses on child development or on specific aspects of development, such as preliteracy, early math, or social-emotional skills; this is perhaps early childhood educations greatest departure from elementary and secondary teacher preparation, where content focuses less on child development and more on subject matter. It is not clear whether specific sequencing of course work matters for students learning. In addition to course work, most but not all ECE teacher preparation programs require students to spend some time in ECE settings, observing and interacting with young children and their families, providing classroom instruction (student teaching), or both. While practicums and student teaching are also required in elementary and secondary teacher preparation, there are some challenges that are unique to early childhood education. First, whereas elementary and secondary education takes place almost exclusively in schools and classrooms, early childhood care and education takes place in a variety of settingseach of which requires a different set of knowledge and skills. Second, elementary and secondary teachers typically are prepared to work with a certain age group, wherein variations in developmental needs and skills are minimal; on the other hand, ECE teachers are prepared to work with children ages zero to eight years and their families, wherein development varies substantially from individual to individual and is highly influenced by the family context. Finally, most ECE teacher preparation programs assign faculty members and veteran teachers to mentor and supervise preservice teachers in their fieldwork, not unlike elementary and secondary teacher preparation programs. Challenges unique to early childhood education, however, include those related to the students ages and experience in the field and the variety of settings within which fieldwork occurs. Because students in ECE teacher preparation programs tend to be older and have more practice experience than those in elementary and secondary programs, the dynamic between the student teacher and the supervisor/mentor can be more difficult to navigate. The ECE student teacher may be more resistant to being told how best to interact with children and families than a younger, more traditional K12 student teacher since many of them may have been working with these populations for years. Similarly, because faculty in ECE teacher education programs are less likely to have had recent experience working directly with children and families, they may lack updated knowledge about what practices work in various settings. Across programs, there are some common gaps in preparation. Despite their inclusion in national teaching standards, such as those provided by the NAEYC, many critical topics tend to be overlooked in most teacher preparation programs. With all the focus on ensuring preschoolers are ready to enter kindergarten with
26

ECE teachers are prepared to work with children ages zero to eight years and their families, wherein development varies substantially from individual to individual and is highly influenced by the family context.

Whitebrook et al., 2009

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Leadership development needs a critical boost

Directors of ECE programs and principals of elementary schools both are charged with leading teams of educatorsand even whole communities in ensuring young children receive high-quality care and instruction. Each has a set of strengths and weaknesses in meeting this charge. Center directors typically are prior teachers of young children and possess both formal and experiential knowledge about child development, but on the other hand, many directors lack experience and formal training in program administration. The reverse is true for principals. Most are skilled and experienced administrators but lack formal knowledge and training in child development. Illinois has made recent advances in enhancing preparation and development for both center directors and elementary school principals to strengthen their capacity to provide high-quality early learning experiences to the children in their centers, schools, and communities. For child-care and preschool directors, Illinois Gateways now offers the Illinois Directors Credential (IDC), and in 2011, the state altered its principal certification to include prekindergarten. Early care and education practitioners can earn the IDC at Level I, II, or III, depending on their formal education credentials, education and training covering content in both early childhood education and administration, ECE and administrative work experience, and contributions to the field. The credential covers seven content areas in early childhood education and development and 10 content areas in ECE program administration and management. Similarly, the new certification for principals requires that preparation programs include content and field experiences in early childhood education. To support this effort, the McCormick Foundation awarded a grant to the University of Illinois at Chicagos College of Education to document and disseminate lessons learned in integrating ECE principles into its revised urban leadership program. Both the IDC and the effort to infuse ECE content in principal training programs reflect a national focus on enhancing leadership in early childhood care and education. For example, in 2005, the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) published a guide for principals who recognize high-quality early childhood education as an essential investment in ensuring all children have the opportunity to succeed.1 Also, NAEYC awards points in its accreditation system for early care and education sites whose leadership holds formally recognized administrator credentials (the IDC was among the first such credentials to be recognized by NAEYC). Additional challenges in building leaders in early childhood care and education are in the areas of policy and higher education. Although graduate programs in education policy abound, there is little attention given in these programs to issues around early childhood education. As a result, very few people have had any formal preparation to be advocates for early childhood care and education; as it is with ECE teacher pathways, advocates typically began their careers as teachers and became leaders in the field by accumulating knowledge through experience. Likewise, there are few people in the pipeline to become ECE teacher preparation faculty.2 There are only 50 or so doctoral programs in early childhood education throughout the nation, and as noted in this report, most programs are understaffed. This poses a threat both to the quantity and quality of teachers who will be available to staff early care and learning-service sites, through its direct effects on instruction and its indirect effects on enrollment in preparation programs.

National Association of Elementary School Principals (2005). Leading Early Childhood Learning Communities: What Principals Should Know and Be Able to Do. Washington, DC: NAESP. 2 Klostermann, Brenda K. (2010). Examining the Chicago early childhood teacher pipeline (IERC 2010-1). Edwardsville, IL: Illinois Education Research Council; Maxwell et al., 2006.
1

the academic skills that will help them succeed, programs are spending very little time on topics related to the care of infants and toddlers. As a result, there is a shortage of teachers who have the knowledge and skills to meet the special needs of this age group, which are very different than those of preschool-aged children. Second, programs are struggling with how to incorporate content on meeting the needs of racially, culturally, linguistically, and ability diverse children. This is important since greater than 90% of teachers trained in bachelors degree programs are white and female while more than 70% of children in subsidized ECE programs are nonwhite. A third gap in teacher preparation is in the area of program management and administration. Preparation in this area is critical to leadership development. Directors and lead teachers need knowledge and skills in these areas to be able to effectively manage their child-care and early education programs and to support and develop their teaching staff. Similarly, because ECE teaching personnel work closely with families and in teams (the latter in part because of low adult-child ratio requirements), preparation in adult learning and development is critical but also overlooked. Although research interest in teacher preparation has grown tremendously since the early 1980s, very little empirical data are available for answering critical questions about program components and their effectiveness. For example, what program components and features are linked to better learning outcomes for young children? How should program components and features be implemented? How do we ensure fidelity of implementation across various preparation programs? Researchers are just beginning to launch systematic investigations on questions such as these. Program design and structure. It takes much more time to prepare ECE teachers than is allotted in a four-year program that already is filled to capacity with general educational requirements, professional education requirements, and student teaching requirementsmuch less a two-year program. Once these various requirements are taken into consideration, there is not enough room left in the curriculum to include all critical content according to national teaching standards for early childhood education. Moreover, there is concern that the required fieldwork is too brief and scattered. As with elementary and secondary teacher preparation, there is growing support in the field to extend programs to five years in order to accommodate all critical content in greater depth as well as longer and more focused opportunities for fieldwork and practicums.27 In fact, both the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and AACTE recently released reports calling for more clinical residency models in teacher preparation programs at all levels.28 These reports cite the substantial growth in privately operated alternative certification and teacher residency programs over the past several years, which now are no longer required to collaborate with institutions of higher education in developing and administering their programs. Besides the length of programs, their design and structure must also take into account the sequencing of specific course work and fieldwork and the coordination between course work and fieldwork. For example, there are questions as to whether it makes sense to provide more opportunities for field
27 28

With all the focus on ensuring preschoolers are ready to enter kindergarten with the academic skills that will help them succeed, programs are spending very little time on critical content related to: the care of infants and toddlers; how to incorporate content on meeting the needs of racially, culturally, linguistically, and ability diverse children; program management and administration; and adult learning and development.

Levine, A. (2006). Educating School Teachers. Washington, DC: The Education Schools Project. AACTE, 2004; NCATE, 2011

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Early childhood education teacher supply and demand in Illinois

Are there enough qualified preschool teachers to fill the available positions? The National Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects that between 2008 and 2018 we will see a higher national demand growth for preschool teachers than other occupations. Comparatively, average occupational growth is 10%; however, the BLS projects a growth of 19% for preschool teachers. The BLS suggests this heightened demand stems from increased emphasis on early childhood education and development of programs, such as full-day and universal preschool. The 2008 ISBE Illinois Educator Supply and Demand report indicates that the number of Type 04 certificates granted increased by 10% between 2004 and 2008.1 At the peak of this increase, in 2007, 1,056 ECE certificates were issued. At this same time, ISBE reported only 194 first-time hires. The supply of graduates greatly outnumbered the number of available public school positions. However, the FY 07 Illinois budget, allocated funds to expand the Early Childhood Block Grantfunded Pre-School for All program by 32,000 children over three years. These classrooms likely operate outside of the public school system in one of the many ECE program models. ISBE Early Childhood Block Grant compliance required a 10 to 1 ratio with a maximum of 20 young children per room and one teacher who holds a Type 04 certificate. This equated to a demand of 1,600 additional ECE teachers who hold a bachelors degree and Type 04 certification across Illinois. The Illinois Education Research Councils analysis of the ECE teacher pipeline reported that Illinois had the capacity to meet this demand, granted the right incentives were put in place to entice Type 04 certificate holders to seek these positions and the continuing production of Type 04 certified teachers.2

ISBE Educator Supply and Demand in Illinois-2008 Annual Report. www.isbe.state.il.us/research/pdfs/ ed_supply_demand_08.pdf. 2 Presley, J. B., Klostermann, B. K., & White, B. R. (2006). Pipelines and pools: Meeting the demand for early childhood teachers in Illinois (IERC 2006-3). Edwardsville, IL: Illinois Education Research Council.
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experience earlier or later in programs and how to account for what is referred to as the apprenticeship of observation (accumulated experiences as students informally observing their own teachers).29 Similarly, there are concerns that programs do not sufficiently link content in course work to practices in the field. There has been some movement toward an integrated curriculum, wherein core content is infused across all components of the curriculum.30 Finally, programs vary in their method of delivering instruction, largely depending on the characteristics and circumstances of the students whom they serve. Many programs are moving to online or hybrid programs (combination of online and face-to-face instruction) in order to offer greater flexibility in accommodating students who are working full-time or have family and household obligations. In addition, cohort models show promise for enhancing the postsecondary experiences and increasing program completion rates among black and Latino/a students.31 The preceding review of existing literature on ECE teacher preparation highlights many areas that are in need of improvement. Preparing teachers to work with young children and their families is very different from preparing teachers to work with children in elementary and secondary classroom settings. ECE teachers enter formal education at various stages in their careers and life cycles and with varying levels of knowledge about and experience with young children. They work in a variety of settings with diverse children and families, across a wide range of ages and developmental stages. As a result, programs that prepare ECE teachers vary in their content and curricula, have limited capacity to ideally prepare teachers to work with all young children, are characterized by large gaps in content and a disconnect between theory and practice, and lack clear models for designing effective preparation programs. The work that is needed to improve ECE teacher preparation will be best accomplished through effective partnership and collaboration betweeen the many entities involved in early childhood care and education.

The work that is needed to improve ECE teacher preparation will be best accomplished through effective partnership and collaboration between the many entities involved in early childhood care and education.

AECTP-IL work group deliberations: Improving early childhood education teacher preparation in Illinois
Our review of the literature related to ECE teacher preparation provided a basis for beginning deliberations of the AECTP-IL work group. Work group deliberations yielded a set of key issues and barriers in ECE teacher preparation that converged almost completely with the problems identified in the literature review. We present these issues and barriers below, followed by a set of consensus recommendations for addressing them within higher education and between higher education and other entities involved in training and developing teachers.
Lortie, D. C. (1975). Schoolteacher: a sociological study. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, as cited in Rust, F. O. (2009). Shaping new models for early childhood teacher education. June meeting of the National Association for Early Childhood Teacher Educators. Charlotte, NC. 30 Kim, M. M., Andrews, R. L., Carr, D. L. (2004). Traditional versus integrated preservice teacher education curriculum: A case study. Journal of Teacher Education, Vol. 55 (4), pp. 341-356. 31 Whitebrook et al., 2009
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Key challenges in early childhood education teacher preparation in Illinois

Because AECTP-IL recruited work group participants across a broad range of entities involved in preparing ECE teachers and caregivers, we are confident in our conclusion that this miscellany of institutions shares a central objective in ensuring a high-quality ECE teaching workforce: Recruiting the best candidates (both in terms of academic achievement and experience/disposition) into teacher education programs. Preparing candidates for high-quality and effective teaching in all ECE classrooms. Supporting candidates and new teachers in developing and improving their skills. AECTP-IL identified eight key challenges in meeting this objective, broken down across the areas of recruitment and retention, preparation, and support. Recruiting the best candidates into teacher education programs. Because teaching young and very young children is very different from teaching elementary, middle, and high school students, identifying the best ECE teacher candidates is rather complex. ECE teachers must have the ability to observe and record childrens learning, transform written curricula into effective practice, use interactive routines to engage young children, engage in thoughtful reflection that improves their ability to meet students learning needs, and behave in ways that are highly professional.32 In addition, ECE teachers must possess a disposition that facilitates positive rapport and interactions with both young children and their families from diverse backgrounds. Many ECE teachers work in the communities where they live, and therefore bring into their classrooms a wealth of community cultural knowledge. For these teacherswho make up the majority of the ECE workforcethere are many barriers to access teacher education and advance their careers. First, entry requirements for teacher education programs, especially for certification programs, are too varied across institutions of higher education and are difficult to attain for many early childhood care and education practitioners e.g., gatekeeper tests, such as the Illinois Basic Skills test, present a significant hurdle for many students. At the same time, however, the field is criticized for requirements being too varied and too low. Thus, substantial tension arises between raising requirements to ensure a high-quality professional standard and increasing access among skilled, experienced practitioners who are not adequately prepared for the academic rigor of degree and certification programs. This is problematic since it contributes to the creation and perpetuation of a

32

Kagan et al., 2008

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Eight key challenges in recruiting, preparing, and supporting ECE teachers in Illinois
Objective: Recruiting the best candidates into teacher education programs. Key challenges: 1. While ENTRY REQUIREMENTS for teacher education programs (especially certification programs) are difficult to attain for many early childhood care and education practitioners, they are at the same time too varied and too low. 2. Problems with ARTICULATION AND TRANSFER from one college or university program to another threaten the supply of teachers for ECE classrooms and contribute to inequalities within the workforce. 3. MATRICULATION SUPPORTS aimed at retaining students throughout the successful completion of teacher preparation programs, including financial, social, and academic supports, are insufficient. Objective: Preparing preservice teachers for high-quality and effective teaching in all ECE classrooms. Key challenges: 4. GAPS IN PREPARATIONThese gaps include content in the areas of infants and toddlers; program management and administration; and working with families, communities, and other adult staff. 5. LACK OF CAPACITYECE teacher preparation programs typically suffer from too few financial resources and faculty and too little time. 6. COURSE WORK AND FIELD APPLICATIONcourse work is often too theoretical and not linked to field experiences; practices taught in preparation programs sometimes are not supported within ECE settings; and field placements often are too brief. Objective: Supporting pre-service and new teachers in developing and improving their skills. Key challenges: 7. Lack sufficient HIGH-QUALITY PLACEMENTS for diverse field experiences. 8. Lack sufficient structures for HIGH-QUALITY MENTORING AND SUPERVISION of preservice and new teachers.

Problems with Illinois Basic Skills Test

In Illinois, students seeking state certification to teach in public schools including ECE teachers working in state prekindergarten classrooms are required to pass the Illinois Basic Skills test as part of the Illinois Certification Testing System (ICTS).1 Recently the Illinois State Board of Education raised the minimum scores required to pass the test, increasing them by as much as 40% (e.g., from 35% to 75% correct responses on the math section of the test). Recent data from the Illinois Education Research Council indicate that, under the changes, passing scores are roughly equivalent to a score of 25 or 26 on the ACT (national average score is 21, which ACT considers the threshold for college ready).2 The change in the minimum score requirement has led to a drastic dropoff in the number of people who pass the test and has disproportionately affected some demographic subgroups such as African Americans and Latinos.3 We suspect that students enrolled in early childhood programs are also disproportionately affected by the change, but the data have not been reported in such a way as to allow for a relevant analysis. But if our assumption is correct, this means that early childhood care and education in Illinois will be faced with an imbalanced, racially and ethnically stratified, multitiered workforce wherein highly skilled, experienced practitioners are overrepresented in support positions and underrepresented in high-level instruction positions because they did not meet requirements for entry into postsecondary degree programs. While we would not dispute that entry assessments can be one useful means of estimating candidates potential for successfully completing the academic requirements for teacher licensing and certification programs, it is not clear how useful such assessments are for predicting the extent to which candidates go on to become effective teachers. In fact, by some accounts, exams such as the Basic Skills test are better at predicting who will leave the profession than who will be effective in it, with higher scores being associated with greater likelihood of exiting within five years.4 In any case, in order to attract and retain the best teachers in early childhood care and education, entry exams of any sort are insufficient on their own.

To be replaced by the Test of Academic Proficiency (TAP) beginning February 2012 Illinois Education Research Consortium (May 2011). Comparison of Illinois Basic Skills Test Results and ACT Scores. Accessed at http://ierc.siue.edu/documents/BW%202011%20BST%20ACT%20analysis.pdf. 3 Grow Your Own Illinois. The Basic Skills Test: Results September 2010 to December 2011. http://www. growyourownteachers.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=114&Itemid=133. 4 Goldhaber, D. (2006). Everybodys doing it, but what does teacher testing tell us about teacher effectiveness? Seattle, WA: Center on Reinventing Public Education, University of Washington.
1 2

racially, culturally, and economically stratified workforce wherein teachers from racial/ethnic minority groups and low socio-economic backgrounds are relegated to support roles in the classroom while lead teachers and directors tend to be white and middle class.33 Second, inconsistency across ECE teacher education programs creates problems with articulation and transfer. Like problems with entry requirements, problems with articulation and transfer from one college/university program to another threaten the supply of teachers for ECE classrooms and contribute to inequalities within the workforce. Despite efforts by accrediting bodies, such as NAEYC and NCATE, to standardize what ECE teachers should know and be able to do, teacher education programs vary greatly in their design, structure, content, and approach. All programs accredited by NAEYC and NCATE are required to align their curriculum and assessments to a set of ECE teaching standards, but such alignments are completely subjective and somewhat arbitrary. As a result, there is great variation in teacher education programs and their quality. And finally, there is a lack of sufficient matriculation supports, especially for nontraditional students. For example, the problems with both entry requirements and articulation and transfer restrict access to higher education and career advancement among subpopulations within the ECE teaching workforce. Most ECE practitioners begin their postsecondary education with the CDA. Both the improvements in their job-related outcomes (e.g., career advancement and improved compensation) and their sense of personal accomplishment often motivate these practitioners to continue their education even further. Naturally, many assume that they may be able to apply the work they completed for the CDA toward an associates degree. However, although the CDA requires that students complete 120 hours of formal training and education in early childhood care and education, these hours need not be taken for credit and thus often are not accepted in degree programs. As a result, practitioners holding the CDA are either precluded from entering degree programs or end up repeating course work. The same is true for students who do complete the associates degree and transfer to a bachelors degree program. As Illinois begins to implement its more stringent teacher evaluation policy, it is also considering how to link teacher performance with the institutions that trained them. This may exacerbate issues with articulation and transfer since four-year programs may be more rigid in their expectations of transfers from other programs. Among those practitioners who are able to take the next step and enroll in school, there are additional challenges in retaining them in programs through successful completion and advancement into teaching roles. Because many ECE practitioners seeking to advance from entry-level positions face so many challenges, including low wages and low literacy skills, they generally need substantial financial, social, and academic supports to successfully matriculate in postsecondary degree programs. ECE practitioners who return to school to earn an associates or bachelors degree earn low wages and require financial assistance to pay for their education. Because they tend to continue working full-time for their subsistence and typically have family obligations, they require flexibility in how, when, and where courses are delivered. They also require a great deal of support in adjusting to college lifeboth as new students and as transfer
33

Fowler et al., 2008

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students moving from a two-year to a four-year institution. Many of these students are smart, capable professionals but do not possess the social capital that is required to navigate all of these challenges. For example, many of them are firstgeneration college students and thus do not have preexisting knowledge about what steps they need to take to complete the enrollment process. And once on campus, they may not be aware about the resources available to them as students and do not possess preexisting knowledge about the kinds of questions they should be asking to learn their way through the system. Preparing preservice teachers for high-quality and effective teaching in all ECE classrooms. Beyond recruiting the best candidates into programs and retaining them in the face of so many personal challenges, ECE teacher education programs face challenges in how best to prepare all teachers for all classrooms. These challenges include gaps in preparation, wherein curricula are so full that some critical content areas are either completely overlooked or not covered in sufficient depth. Relatedly, institutions of higher education lack sufficient resources to ideally deliver instruction and mentor and supervise students. And finally, consistent with the literature on teacher preparation, there is little connection between what students learn in the classroom and what they encounter in their field work. Curricula in ECE teacher preparation programs is largely driven by the market. That is, programs are designed to help students meet requirements for the various jobs available (typically in their state), which vary widely depending on the type of early care and education setting, funding, and regulation. For example, to teach in a state prekindergarten program in Illinois, teachers will need to obtain a Type 04 certification. On the other hand, Type 04certified teachers are not required by Head Start programs, which do require teachers with bachelors degrees in early childhood education or child development. Since the teaching standards on which these credentials are based are extensive and do not completely overlap, little room is left in the respective curricula for preparation in other critical areas such as ELL/linguistically and culturally diverse learners, infants and toddlers, program management and administration, and working with adult learners. Although the revised Illinois Teaching Standards have done an excellent job of integrating ELL/ bilingual standards, the other areas are still largely ignored. It is crucial that highquality teachers be sufficiently prepared in all of these critical content areas. As state boards of education and other regulating bodies increasingly recognize gaps in teacher preparation and continue to change requirements accordingly, ECE teacher preparation programs are constantly making adjustments to their curricula. But these programs rarely receive additional resources to meet new demands. Programs typically suffer from too few financial resources and faculty (both in number and experience) and too little time. There are few full-time faculty in ECE teacher preparation programs, and thus, they are overburdened with teaching responsibilities as well as mentoring and supervising students in the field. Moreover, many faculty lack the expertise to teach across critical content areas in sufficient depth, and institutions provide very few opportunities for continued professional development. Faculty would benefit greatly from increased numbers in ECE teacher preparation programs and from continued opportunities to develop their own knowledge and skills. This includes opportunities for working directly

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ELINCS
Early Learning in Illinois: Networks, Connections, and Structures (ELINCS) is a collaborative effort between University of Illinois at Chicago and Harold Washington College (HWC), one of the City Colleges of Chicago. It is designed specifically to remove or attenuate key barriers in recruiting, retaining, and successfully matriculating high-need ECE students through both an associates and a bachelors degree program. ELINCS is focused most centrally on creating and sustaining a network of supports for students, including intensive mentoring and counseling services and innovations in instructional delivery that respond to students lifestyle needs. In addition to attenuating barriers stemming from a lack of matriculation supports, these activities will address barriers to entry in postsecondary degree programs by helping students build the skills necessary to pass the Illinois Basic Skills test (if they intend to pursue state certification) and meet other academic requirements. ELINCS directly addresses barriers stemming from problems with articulation and transfer through its collaboration between UIC and HWC in developing their respective associates and bachelors degree programs conjointly with one another. This ensures a seamless connection for students transferring from the two-year to the four-year program.

ESL and Bilingual teacher requirements mandated in Illinois

Immigrant families make up 26% of the population in Illinois, and this number continues to grow by almost 36,000 people annually. According to 2010 census data, families in 21.3% of Illinois households speak a language other than English. Since more than 24% of Illinois households include school-age children, Illinois classrooms are also becoming more linguistically diverse. There are a number of challenges that teachers and students alike may face in linguistically diverse classrooms, such as teachers feeling under prepared to work with special populations and classroom misunderstandings between teacher and student and/or teacher and parent that are a result of language barriers.1 To address these challenges, Illinois has made some changes to the law that governs bilingual education services for children in public school settings. Beginning in 2014, the new school code extends down to preschools, mandating that programs funded through the Early Childhood Block Grant (ECBG) require specific credentials for teachers working with bilingual populations. As of July 14, 2014, centers that enroll 20 preschool children who have the same home language are required to offer a Transitional Bilingual Education (TBE) program, including instruction in the childrens home language by a teacher who holds a bilingual endorsement. (See rigorous educational requirements below.) Additionally, a center that has enrolled 19 or fewer preschool children who have the same home language must offer a Transitional Program of Instruction (TPI) or a TBE program. Teachers providing TPI models of instruction must hold either the ESL endorsement or bilingual approval. To earn the new bilingual and ESL endorsements, ECE teachers must hold a valid, Illinois teaching certificate. Earning the ESL endorsement requires that teachers complete 18 hours of course work in five content areas including linguistics, theoretical foundation of teaching ESL, assessment of the bilingual student, methods of material for teaching ESL, and cross-cultural studies for teaching limited-English proficient students. The course work also includes a minimum of 100 clock hours, or three months, teaching English language learners. To earn the bilingual approval teachers must also demonstrate that they can effectively educate in the language of instruction for which they seek the approval and successfully pass an examination to demonstrate their competency in that language. As described elsewhere in this report, early childhood education already faces pressure to increase the credentials of the teaching workforce. While the state board of education should be credited for putting the children of Illinois first, these increased credential requirements complicate and add stress to an already fragile ECE workforce. Of most concern are the ECBG programs offered through the CPS Community Partnership. These programs, offered in community agencies, are most likely to be serving English language learners, but are least likely to have teaching staff that hold the required credentials. Higher-education faculty in ECE teacher preparation programs across Illinois are responding to the increased requirement through both faculty development and program redesign. The Illinois Resource Center, Illinois Gateways, Chicago Metro AEYC, and other funded projects are sponsoring faculty conferences, workshops, and trainings. Both preparation programs and existing ESL and bilingual course work are being redesigned to meet the challenge. For example, DePaul University has integrated bilingual content into its curriculum, preparing all teacher candidates with the course work necessary to meet the ESL endorsement or earn the bilingual approval, and the University of Illinois at Chicago is currently revising its ESL/bilingual endorsement course work to reflect the particular needs of teachers of young children.

Daniel, J., & Friedman, S. (2005) Taking the Next Step: Preparing Teachers to Work with Cultural and Linguistically Diverse Children. Beyond the Journal.

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with children and families, which most faculty at four-year institutions have never done and those at two-year institutions have long left behind. Lack of capacity in higher educationbased ECE teacher preparation programs also contributes in part to the disconnect between course work and the practices students apply in the field. Course work generally is too theoretical and not clearly and explicitly linked to field experiences. Faculty who are not only knowledgeable about academic content and pedagogy, but who also are experienced in working with todays young children and their families in diverse settings can more easily and credibly make course work more relevant. In addition to course work being too theoretical, the practices students learn in their course work are sometimes not supported within early childhood care and education settings, and field placements are often too brief to allow opportunities for applying new knowledge. Supporting preservice and new teachers in developing and improving their skills. In order to become effective, preservice and beginning teachers need ample opportunities for practice. Course work may instruct them in theories about child development, learning, pedagogy, and even best practices, but can not possibly prepare them for all that they will encounter once they begin full-time work as teachers of young children. Ideally, preservice teachers should have ample opportunities for observing good practice in action, applying their own new knowledge and skills in the classroom, and being exposed to children and families of various backgrounds and abilities. In addition, they should be exposed to diverse early care and education settings to provide them with experiences that may not be so ideal. This is the reality of being a teacher, and especially of young children, since they will encounter children who are entering their classrooms at varying levels of development and from various backgrounds. And unlike elementary and the upper grades, ECE teachers have more frequent and deeper interactions with parents and families. Although teachers learn effective practices best from experience, in the early part of their careers they can receive a critical boost from high-quality mentoring and supervision by more experienced teachers. Mentoring and supervision for ECE teachers has many challenges that are based largely in the complexity of the work. Again, preservice and in-service ECE teachers are placed in a variety of settings with children of diverse ages and backgrounds that demand different types of observation, evaluation, and direction. Thus, mentoring and supervision is intense and time-consuming since mentors must adapt their approaches for the particular settings in which their charges practice. Because faculty in teacher preparation programs are already overburdened, this work can be particularly taxing for them and for the students. The challenges facing ECE teacher preparation are many and complex, even when considering only those issues around recruitment and retention, preparation, and support for new teachers. Because there are multiple points of entry to preparation and developmentboth preservice and in-servicethe pathway from preparation to credentials to career is not as linear and predictable in early childhood education as it is at the K-12 level. Preparation and development must be overhauled to accommodate the practical needs of the ECE teaching workforce while ensuring all teachers are highly qualified to work with all young children and their families across a variety of early care and education settings. 36

Recommendations: Improving early childhood education teacher preparation in Illinois

AECTP-IL concurs with the AACTE focus councils conclusion (2004) that a miscellany of institutions has historically carried out the preparation of ECE teachers and caregivers, resulting in fragmentation among multiple constituents. We know, for example, that several initiatives exist in Illinois to address issues related to recruitment and retention of high-quality ECE teachers, such as the Early Learning Councils workforce development committee, the Gateways to Opportunity career lattice and professional development system, and the Grow Your Own initiative. The challenge, however, is in identifying the points of intersection among these many and varied initiatives and leveraging them to avoid duplication and hasten progress in improving young childrens learning and development. Accordingly, the AECTP-IL recommendations offered below are based on the organizing principle of strengthening partnerships within and among institutions of higher education, and between them and the various entities involved in ECE teacher preparation and development in Illinois.

Overall objective
a) Recruiting the best candidates (both in terms of academic achievement and experience/disposition) into teacher education programs. b) Preparing them for high-quality, effective teaching in all ECE settings. c) Supporting candidates in developing and improving their skills. Work on the AECTP-IL projectboth the literature review and the work group deliberationshas suggested that ECE teacher preparation may need to be completely reconstructed in order to recruit and retain the best candidates, prepare them sufficiently for work with all young children in diverse settings, and support them in those settings. As presently designed, higher educationbased programs are modeled too closely to elementary and secondary preparation programs, which, as this report demonstrates, is vastly different from ECE preparation. Moreover, in order to maximize the impact that the miscellany of institutions can have on preparing a highly qualified, highly effective ECE teaching workforce, systems need to be built that effectively leverage the combined interests and initiatives of these many institutions.

Recommended actions
1.1 Recruiting the best candidates into programs a) Entry requirements i. Overhaul entry requirements completely, including:

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a. recruiting students already working in the field who exhibit exceptional talent in and commitment to working with young children and their families and demonstrate potential for academic success; and b. replacing the Illinois Basic Skills test, which has not been shown to predict students later performance as teachers, with an assessment or a battery of assessments known to be correlated with relevant outcomes. ii. Administer assessments earlier, perhaps even in high school. Most often, students complete assessments years after they were exposed to relevant contentusually after their second year of postsecondary education, as part of their application for candidacy. Since many students in ECE teacher preparation programs are returning students, the content is even further removed. Administering assessments earlier could enhance students likelihood of passing the exam without lowering the standard. Work more closely with and support K12 systems to ensure students seeking entry to postsecondary ECE programs are adequately prepared in academic content, particularly English and math. Currently, too many students are leaving high school without sufficient skills or preparation to successfully manage the academic rigor of college course work. This lack of preparation contributes to the difficulties students have in meeting entry requirements for teacher education programs. The current move toward comprehensive P20 systems that focus on key transitions from early childhood into early adulthood may be a good start. Execute broader and better collaboration between institutions of higher education, including pooling resources to support students in preparing to meet entry requirements; and improve collaboration among academic departments within institutions in designing teacher education courses.

iii.

iv.

b) Articulation and transfer i. Build stronger relationships with other units and disciplines within institutions of higher education. Better alignment of general education requirements between two- and four-year institutions is critical and can only be accomplished through better collaborationboth between these institutions and among the departments within them. Build on and support existing efforts to improve articulation and transfer initiatives, such as those by ACCESS and the Illinois Articulation Initiative.

ii.

c) Lack of sufficient matriculation supports, especially for nontraditional students i. Redesign preparation programs in ways that recognize the unique needs of students pursuing degrees in early childhood education and support them accordingly, modeling off of similar programs that support adult learners in other fields. 38

1. Work more closely with other units within institutions of higher education to incorporate flexibility in instructional delivery such as through providing evening, weekend, online/hybrid, and accelerated programs through departments of continuing education, or a similar arrangement; 2. Partner with businesses, corporations, and foundations to fund and develop financial supports such as scholarships, forgivable loan programs, and paid field experiences. ii. Design and implement innovative features that can facilitate student learning and success. 1. Consider cohort models that enable students to support and learn from each other; these have been shown to have some promise, particularly for students from underrepresented racial/ ethnic minority groups. 2. Institute centralized systems of support that corral all internal and external resources available to students and assist them in navigating the process of leveraging these opportunities. 1.2 Preparing candidates for high-quality, highly effective teaching in all ECE classrooms. a) Gaps in preparation i. Invest in developing alternatively structured programs in order to incorporate all critical content that currently cannot be accommodated in a traditional four-year program, such as by integrating content in a oneyear clinical residency, internship, or clinical rotation across a variety of settings. Redesign programs to incorporate critical content across all course work through supplemental materials (e.g., prerecorded video featuring instruction modules from experts in the field) or other means of advanced technology. Institute a tiered ECE teacher certification process wherein a basic certificate is offered when candidates meet minimum requirements, and they work toward full certification as they meet requirements for approvals and endorsements in critical content areas.

ii.

iii.

b) Lack of capacity within higher education i. Make greater investments in ECE faculty hiring and professional development as this is critical to increasing higher-education capacity for preparing high-quality ECE teachers.

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ii.

Pool resources within and among institutions of higher education, and between them and other early childhood care and education entities. For example, coteaching among ECE and arts-and-sciences faculty can leverage their dual expertise in delivering the highest quality content to preservice teachers. Similarly, onsite teacher education courses in childcare and preschool classrooms simultaneously provides instruction to both preservice and in-service teachers, as well as professional development for ECE faculty.

c) Disconnect between course work and field application i. Offer fieldwork experiences very early in students preparation, with more intensive mentoring, supervision, and coaching and explicit connections to course work. Rotate field placements to expose students to a greater diversity of settings and opportunities for applying different practices as appropriate. Move toward more clinically based programs, integrating course work with field experiences by explicitly applying theory to field-based assignments. Execute focused collaboration between higher education programs and early care and education provider sites in planning field experiences. This has the potential to enhance alignment of teaching philosophies and practices between them, as well as to provide professional development opportunities for site directors and curriculum leaders.

ii.

iii.

iv.

1.3 Supporting preservice and new teachers in developing and improving their skills. a) Lack sufficient high-quality placements for diverse field experiences i. Forge better partnerships between universities and early care and education providers to facilitate better alignment of goals, objectives, and expectations regarding ECE teachers. The reciprocal effects of such partnerships include enhanced quality of both ECE settings and teacher preparation programs. ECE settings benefit from evidence-based professional development opportunities for all staff, and teacher preparation programs benefit from greater opportunities for practical application of what is learned in course work. Subject provider sites to an application and approval process to facilitate development of a system for matching sites with programs and students. Applications can be entered into a database that could be shared among institutions. Sites may be offered incentives for participating and may be designated as model sites for applying key concepts and practices (e.g., linguistic and cultural diversity, special education, and adult learning communities).

ii.

40

b) Lack of sufficient structures for high-quality mentoring and supervision of preservice and new teachers i. Pool resources across institutions of higher education to create a systemwide database of mentor teachers, wherein mentors can be assigned to several students regardless of institution. Assign mentors to students as soon as they begin their preparation programs. Mentors would then support them through their first year of teaching, bridging preservice preparation and in-service induction. Unlike a field work supervisor or mentor, mentoring in this sense is broadened. Responsibilities would go beyond providing guidance related to academics and teaching practice, to include issues related to balancing work, family, and school; navigating the web of institutional supports available to students and taking advantage of opportunities; and embarking on a sustainable career in early childhood education with a clear plan for advancement. As with placement settings, subject potential mentors to an application process that would provide them with incentives, such as paid release time, additional pay, and continuous training for quality mentoring.

ii.

iii.

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Suggested citation: Nelson, C. C., Main, C. M., and Kushto-Hoban, J. (2012). Breaking it down and building it out: Enhancing collective capacity to improve early childhood teacher preparation in Ilinois. Chicago, IL: UIC College of Education

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Contact Information
University of Illinois at Chicago College of Education 1040 W. Harrison Street (M/C 147) Chicago, IL 60607 www.education.uic.edu

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