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ERIC Identifier: ED317542 Publication Date: 1988-00-00 Author: Curry, Jennifer Source: ERIC Clearinghouse on Teacher Education Washington DC. The Role of the Community College in the Creation of a Multi-Ethnic Teaching Force. ERIC Digest.To increase the number of qualified teachers with backgrounds reflective of the ethnic and racial diversity of their students, fundamental changes in the recruitment processes used for teacher education will be required. Community colleges have the students, support services, and articulation mechanisms in place to play a critical role in the development of a multi-ethnic teaching force. However, the potential contributions of the community college sector must be integrated into a sequence of recruitment, retention, training, and job placement efforts involving all segments of higher education. TEACHER SUPPLY AND DEMANDThe challenge to maintain a
sufficiently large, ethnically diverse, and well-trained teaching force is
complicated by a number of factors. Less than 8 percent of first-time college
freshmen in 1985 indicated an interest in teaching careers (Tucker, 1985) and a
1984 study found that only 68 percent of the working college graduates certified
to teach were actually engaged in teaching. Among those who did not enter the
profession, 16.8 percent had received a better job offer and 12 percent were
deterred by the low pay and poor working conditions (Carnegie Foundation for the
Advancement of Teaching, 1987).
The problem is further compounded by the shortage of minority teachers. Although recent research (AACTE, 1988) indicates an increase in the number of students entering teacher education, less than 10 percent are members of minority groups. Blacks comprise approximately 6.9 percent of the teaching force, while Hispanics and other minorities comprise another 3.5 percent of the profession (Woods and Williams, 1987). On the other hand, minority student K-12 enrollments continue to grow rapidly representing nearly 30 percent of the school-age population (OERI, 1987). It appears that new ways of recruiting and preparing minorities outside of the traditional, university-based teacher education programs must be developed. Partnerships between two- and four-year colleges addressing recruitment and preparation issues are one viable alternative. THE COMMUNITY COLLEGE'S ROLE IN RECRUITMENT AND TRAININGTwo-year community colleges represent an ideal place to encourage
minority students to enter teaching occupations. These institutions enroll 54
percent of all Hispanics and 45 percent of all Blacks currently pursuing higher
education in the United States. In addition, community colleges enroll a great
many older students who are preparing for a career change. The coming teacher
shortage will demand that recruitment efforts extend beyond traditionally aged
college students (Woods and Williams, 1987).
Since many students enter community colleges with unstable or unclear academic or career goals (Shavelson et al., 1983), community college career counseling and academic advisement services can be particularly influential in promoting the teaching career option. Further, community colleges' general education curriculum, work experience programs, remedial studies, and student development activities provide a good beginning for the systematic provision of undergraduate teacher education. STRATEGIES FOR COMMUNITY COLLEGE INVOLVEMENTIn order for
community colleges to realize their potential in recruiting and training
minority students for teaching, two problems that plague many community colleges
must be overcome: high rates of student attrition, especially among minority
students, and low rates of successful transfer to four-year colleges. Strategies
for addressing these problems focus in three areas: student services,
curriculum, and articulation.
Student services provide the framework for the development of the student outside of the classroom. Services that are particularly relevant to the recruitment and retention of minority students include assessment of skills and interests, internship opportunities, and the provision of role models and mentors. Of particular importance are adequate financial aid information and streamlined financial aid procedures. Although the general education curriculum at community colleges is designed to provide the background needed by students to pursue any field of study, successful teacher recruitment will require some exposure to education courses during the first two years of college. Students should not be expected to defer taking courses that will further their career goals until they reach the upper-level university (Haberman, 1988). The issue of articulation between two- and four-year colleges is related to the broader issue of the effectiveness of the community college transfer function. In Florida, where higher education articulation is state-mandated and controlled, approximately 49 percent of the state university students enrolled in teacher training programs attended a community college (Beck et al., 1985). Elsewhere, agreements between individual two- and four-year colleges ensure that equivalent courses taught at the two- and four-year college levels have common prerequisites, content, and credit value. Transfer and degree achievement are also facilitated by dual admissions programs, whereby students gain admission to university teacher training programs while continuing their enrollment at a community college. EXAMPLES OF WORKING RELATIONSHIPSTo realize the full
potential of community colleges for developing multi-ethnic teachers, their
efforts must be integrated with all segments of higher education as the
following examples demonstrate. Woods and Williams (1987) highlight projects in
which community colleges are collaborating with other agencies to prepare
minority teachers:
MINORITY TEACHER PREPARATION PROGRAMThe University of
Wisconsin-Whitewater has developed a program to increase the number of minority
students eligible for teacher certification and teaching positions in the state
by improving the rate of transfer of minority students and their successful
completion of teacher education programs. A cooperative agreement between the
colleges outlines their commitment to assisting two-year college students
interested in teaching to complete the associate degree; intensifying academic
and financial support for these students; coordinating the transfer of academic
courses to UWW; concurrently admitting teacher education majors to both
institutions; and promoting student interactions with successful minority
teachers and administrators.
SELECTThe Search for Excellent Leaders to Enter Careers in
Teaching (SELECT) program is a three-way collaboration between White Plains
public schools, Westchester Community College, and Pace University in New York.
Recruitment efforts are focused not only on college-bound high school students
and community college students, but also on adults seeking mid-life career
changes. The project features a team-taught course entitled, "Introduction to
Schools and Teaching," which is offered through the collaboration of Westchester
Community College and Pace University.
MINI-CORPS(1989) Mini-corps is a federally funded program designed to recruit and train students with migrant worker backgrounds to become bilingual teachers. The project was initiated in Porterville, California, to give students an opportunity to explore the field of teaching firsthand. The program works closely with area high schools and senior institutions to ensure ease of transfer and to make sure adequate information is given to students interested in teaching. CONCLUSIONSGiven that a significant number of high school
graduates interested in teaching careers start their education at community
colleges, and that large numbers of adults return to community colleges to
prepare for career changes, two-year colleges are prime targets for any effort
to recruit students into the profession. The most important elements of these
efforts are a supportive college environment, dual admissions, adequate
financial aid, and well-functioning articulation agreements with senior
institutions. However, before these programs can be truly effective, the value
placed on the teaching profession, evidenced by prestige and renumeration, must
be raised to make teaching a viable career choice.
REFERENCESMany of the following references--those
identified with an EJ or ED number--have been abstracted and are in the ERIC
data base. The journal articles should be available at most research libraries.
The documents (citations with an ED number) are available on microfiche in ERIC
microfiche collections at more than 700 locations. Documents with ED numbers can
also be ordered through the ERIC Document Reproduction Service by calling (800)
227-3742. For a list of ERIC collections in your area or for information on
submitting documents to ERIC, contact the ERIC Clearinghouse on Teacher
Education, One Dupont Circle, NW, Suite 610, Washington, DC 20036, (202)
293-2450, or the ERIC Clearinghouse on Junior Colleges, University of
California, Los Angeles, Mathematical Sciences Building, Room 8118, 405 Hilgard
Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90024, (213) 825-3931.
American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education. (1988). Teaching Teachers Facts and Figures II. Washington, D.C.: AACTE. (ED 304 410) Note: Also available from AACTE. One Dupont Circle, Suite 610, Washington, DC 20036. $12 prepaid. Bessire, Jack D. "Low Numbers of Minority Graduates Impact Affirmative Action: Effort to Increase Those Numbers Is Essential." Ad Com; May 1989. Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. "Prospective Teachers: Career Choices." Change; v. 19, n.2, p. 31-35. March-April 1987. Cooper, Jeff. "Project Socrates: A Program for Promoting Careers in Teaching." Paper presented at the Intersegmental Coordination Council Forum on Increasing Faculty Diversity (Los Angeles, CA, April 17, 1989). Franklin, John Hope. "The Desperate Need for Black Teachers." Change; v. 19, n. 3, p. 44-45, May-June 1987. Haberman, Martin. "Proposals for Recruiting Minority Teachers: Promising Practices and Attractive Detours." January 1988, 27 pp. (ED 292 760) "Mini-Corps Helps Recruit, Train Bilingual Teachers." Porterville Recorder, Porterville, CA. March 29, 1989. National Governors' Association. Recruiting Minority Classroom Teachers: A National Challenge. National Governors' Association, Washington, DC, 1988. Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI), U.S. Department of Education (1987). Digest of Educational Statistics 1987. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. (ED 282 359) Shavelson, Richard J.; and Others. Potential for Military Recruiting from Two-Year Colleges and Postsecondary Vocational Schools. Santa Monica, CA: Rand Corporation, 1983. 114 pp. (ED 227 915) Tucker, Marc S. "Better Teachers: The Arts and Sciences Connection." Change; v. 18, n. 5, p. 12-17, September-October 1986. (EJ 344 071) Warren, Stanley. Minorities in Teacher Education. Coalition of Teacher Education Programs, 1985. 18 pp. (ED 272 504) Woods, Jacqueline E.; Williams, Ronald A. "Articulating with Two-Year
Colleges to Create a Multi-Ethnic Teaching Force." Paper presented at the
American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education's Wingspread Policy Forum
(Racine, WI, August 5-7, 1987). 31 pp. (ED 295 932) |
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