New Jersey has utilized alternative certification to combat the shortage caused by technology education (TE) teacher attrition. Research has examined the effectiveness of alternative certification preparation programs for the core academic programs; however, very little research has been performed in the area of TE. The purpose of this study was to (a) evaluate the Praxis scores of teacher candidates in New Jersey seeking licensure in technology education, and (b) determine if there were differences between the TE among teachers completing different preparation programs. The theoretical framework that guided this quantitative study was rooted in Knowles' theory of andragogy, which supported learning methods for the teacher as a learner. The guiding question of this study was whether there existed a significant difference in Praxis II test scores among group A (traditionally certified teachers) versus group B (alternatively certified teachers). This causal-comparative design took place among 164 TE teacher candidates from the 2 groups. Instrumentation was a praxis assessment for TE teacher candidates. Data collection included a random sampling of archival scores on the TE test that were analyzed with a t test. Findings revealed that teachers who completed the alternative route preparatory programs (group B) scored within a similar narrow range as compared to the TE teachers completing the traditional preparatory programs (group A). Implications for positive social change include providing the Teacher Advisory Mentor Program (TAMP) for TE teachers, which may reduce attrition of TE teachers and facilitate more effective teaching in the classroom.

Alternative Certification Programs (ACPs) have been established in 47 states across the country, including Florida, to help alleviate the teacher shortage many public school districts have been experiencing during the last two decades. This teacher shortage has been reported to be more prevalent in areas where fully qualified and committed teachers are most needed. Current literature has identified areas such as inner-city schools, at-risk and minority students, bilingual education, math and physical sciences, and the special education field as the educational areas where the shortage is most significant. Faced with this dilemma, states have instituted ACPs as unconventional ways to attract and recruit potential teacher candidates from professional fields outside the profession of education and assist them in becoming fully certified and highly qualified teachers. The objective of any ACP is to provide an alternate way for an interested professional to become a teacher without going back to a college or university. Therefore, any ACP functions as a supplement to traditional college education programs in preparing prospective teacher candidates. The focus of this study is the Alternative Certification Programs established by the public school districts in the state of Florida as required by state statutes. It was designed to assess the effectiveness of such programs based on the perspectives, attitudes, and perceptions that selected public school principals have on these programs and on alternatively certified teachers. These principals were identified and selected by their respective school districts. A questionnaire, created in part by the researcher, was used to identify the perspectives, attitudes, and perceptions public school principals have on ACPs and alternatively certified teachers. Data on the different ACPs were collected directly from the different public school districts and from Internet Web sites established by the districts. The researcher contacted 67 Florida public school districts requesting information on their respective ACPs and asked them to select and identify three school principals who had experience with alternatively certified teachers to participate in a survey concerning their attitudes, perceptions, and perspectives about alternatively certified teachers and the alternative certification programs. The researcher asked that the three principals be selected one each from the grade levels of elementary, middle, and high school. Findings indicated that the alternative certification programs throughout the State of Florida are producing highly qualified teachers whose overall performance has been rated as equal to or better than that of newly hired traditionally certified teacher. These findings are based on the responses provided by the principals who completed and returned the 20-item questionnaire and on other existing literature and data on the state's alternative certification program. The overall impression from the principals' responses is that they are satisfied with the quality work and performance of their alternatively certified teachers.

This research study examined whether there is a relationship between teacher preparation and instructional practice. The dataset for this study was the1999-2000 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS). Specifically, variables created in SASS from the information provided by the Public School Teacher Questionnaire were utilized. The teacher population sample for this research study was derived from these data and then separated into two groups (alternatively and traditionally-certified teachers) based on certification variables within the dataset. The study conducted was a correlational study with instructional practices variables extracted from the dataset. Using Chi Square Goodness of Fit statistical tests, the data were analyzed to determine if teacher preparation influences instructional practice. Therefore, the research questions for this research study were: 1. Is there a statistically significant relationship between whether teachers are alternativelycertified or traditionally-certified and the extent to which they use state or district standards to guide instructional practice in their main teaching assignment? 2. Is there a statistically significant relationship between whether teachers are alternativelycertified or traditionally-certified and whether they use groupings of students in their classroom to teach students who learn at different rates? 3. Is there a statistically significant relationship between whether teachers are alternativelycertified or traditionally-certified and the extent to which they use the information from state or local achievement tests to group students into different instructional groups by achievement or ability? ii 4. Is there a statistically significant relationship between whether teachers are alternativelycertified or traditionally-certified and the extent to which they use the information from state or local achievement tests to assess areas where they need to strengthen their content knowledge or teaching practice? 5. Is there a statistically significant relationship between whether teachers are alternativelycertified or traditionally-certified and the extent to which they use the information from state or local achievement tests to adjust their curriculum in areas where their students encountered problems? Overall, while there were statistically significant relationships between certification type and various instructional practices, the effect sizes were very small (ranging from -.005 to .036). This suggests that the statistical significance may be an artifact of the large sample size and that there may be little practical significance. Therefore, a relationship was not found between the type of teacher preparation program and instructional practice.

One alternatively certified elementary teacher was the subject of this sixteen week research study on science teaching self-efficacy. The researcher taught inquiry based student level science lessons to the fourth grade teacher. The teacher participant, in turn, taught those same lessons to her class while the researcher observed and took field notes. The participant responded to specific open ended questions in a journal after each science experience and also completed three interviews with the researcher. Each sequential lesson from the researcher was then modified based on participant needs. The participant completed the STEBI (Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument) as a pre and post test to measure the effects of the above mentioned activities. The collected data from the STEBI was reported quantitatively. The collected data from the reflective journal entries and interviews were reported qualitatively. After careful analysis of the data gathered for this case study, the researcher came to the conclusion that inquiry based professional development through the use of a mentor affected the alternatively certified elementary teacher's science teaching self-efficacy. The subject maintained a positive attitude about the use of a mentor for the duration of the study and her Personal Science Teaching Efficacy increased or stayed the same on all of the STEBI questions. Limitations of the study as well as recommendations for further research were also discussed.

An increase in the prevalence rate of autism is not necessarily matched by a concurrent increase in the rate of highly qualified special education teachers. The low ratio of highly qualified teachers to the number of students with autism has resulted in chronic teacher shortages in this area. Alternative certification is used as a mechanism to alleviate the demand for highly qualified teachers in special education. However, alternative certification routes have often left novice teachers underprepared for teaching students with autism, more specifically in the implementation of evidence-based practices necessary for instructional effectiveness. The purposes of the study were: a) to assess the knowledge of novice alternatively certified (AC) teachers in the area of autism education; and b) to determine the extent to which age, credit hours of instruction, formal hours of instruction, amount of professional development, and number of students with autism predict the variance in knowledge scores. Participants included all novice (i.e., first-and second-year) alternatively certified special education teachers in the state of Texas. Data were collected through an electronic survey instrument disseminated state-wide to approximately 33 individuals. Multiple regression was conducted in order to determine the strongest predictors of autism knowledge scores. In addition, a multi-way ANOVA was performed to identify differences between groups. The largest predictor of knowledge of autism was hours engaged in self-directed learning. Overall, AC programs in Texas need to provide basic and core content in the area of autism to increase the knowledge of novice teachers.

The Academic Pathway to Teaching (APT) licensure was introduced in 2016 to expand the supply of teachers in Utah. Since then, there has been no formal evaluation of the licensure or the teachers teaching with an APT license. The goals of this study were to explore the effects of the APT licensure on teacher turnover in Utah and to analyze how mentoring experience and teacher self-efficacy were related to the attrition of this population of teachers. This mixed-methods study used data from the Utah State Board of Education to calculate rates of teacher turnover of APT candidates (N=456) for each cohort and school year from 2016-17 to 2017-18. In addition, a survey was sent to current and previous APT candidates with questions on mentoring, self- efficacy, and opinions of the licensure. By their second year of teaching, 41% of the 2016-17 cohort had left teaching in Utah or moved schools. The 2017-18 cohort had a teacher turnover rate of 16%. Although analyses of variance of survey items found no relationship between self- efficacy and attrition, they did find that APT candidates who were still teaching had significantly more frequent and impactful mentoring experiences. Furthermore, data from the open-ended survey responses supported these findings and identified another variable related to the success of APT candidates: previous teaching experience. Although this study is limited by a small survey respondent group of APT candidates who had left teaching (N=13), the implications of this research can shape inform policy decisions regarding alternative certification in Utah.

In many parts of the country principal candidates are being licensed through alternative pathways. Some view this movement as a plausible solution to the shortage of principals and inadequacy of principal preparation programs (Hess, 2003; Southern Regional Education Board, 2006; Thomas B. Fordham Institute, 2003). Others are insulted and threatened by the prospect of a person from a non-traditional background leading a school (Fenwick & Pierce, 2001). The debate as to whether or not these candidates possess the prerequisite skills and knowledge to effectively lead a school continues. But, will superintendents, as gatekeepers to school districts, afford these individuals the opportunity to prove their worth as principals? In this study, superintendents’ attitudes toward alternative licensure of school principals; past behaviors related to hiring alternatively licensed school personnel; attitudes toward specific alternatively licensed personnel; perceptions of the conditions in their school districts; anticipated concerns about hiring alternatively licensed principals; and the presence or absence of a clearly articulated induction program for new principals are used as predictors of superintendents' willingness to recommend hiring alternatively licensed principals to their school boards. The composite model of attitude-behavior consistency and data from a qualitative study of 18 superintendents were the bases for the development of a theory. To test the theory, an on-line questionnaire, using Likert and Thurstone scaled items, was administered to 1200 randomly selected superintendents who were members of the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) in 2005. Multiple regression analysis was used for the analysis of the quantitative data. Five of the 19 predictor variables were significant predictors of superintendents’ willingness to recommend hiring alternatively licensed principals. The strongest relationship existed between superintendents’ willingness to recommend hiring alternatively licensed principals and their perceptions of the instructional leadership ability of alternatively licensed principals. Other significant predictors were superintendents’ past experiences hiring alternatively licensed principals, perceptions of the community acceptance of alternatively licensed principals, general attitude toward alternative licensure, and willingness to hire under the given definition. Superintendents displayed a low neutral (more unfavorable) score on the Thurstone scale, which means they view the employment of alternatively licensed principals slightly unfavorably. / Ph. D.

This qualitative study examined principals’ and teachers’ perceptions regarding retaining teachers in a large urban school system. This study was based on the premise that once teachers are recruited into an urban school, genuine support (conceptual and instructional) is needed for them to be retained in that type of setting. Retaining highly qualified teachers in urban schools is integral for student achievement and can relieve the financial strain for school districts. Studies have found that when teachers reach their fifth year of teaching, many leave the profession for various reasons, and most never return. To ensure the validity of the study, the triangulation method was deemed most appropriate and the instruments used to gather the data were; questionnaires and focus groups. The study was conducted in one of the largest urban school districts in the metropolitan Atlanta area. Three elementary Title I schools with relatively low (CCPRI) scores per Georgia’s Department of Education and similar demographics were selected to participate. The study required that all participants have more than two years of experience in an urban school. Collectively, 3 principals and 82 teachers responded to the questionnaires and 18 teachers participated in the focus groups. Based on the findings, teachers leave the large urban school system because of the lack of quality instruction feedback, teacher support, and teacher classroom management in their schools. It was found that it is difficult to retain teachers of a demographic (age and gender per the study). Data collection also revealed that intensive induction/ mentoring programs provided throughout the school year should be offered by the district. The conclusions drawn from the findings suggest that principals and teachers have contrasting perceptions of why teachers leave their schools. Principals felt that they were working to build capacity in their schools to improve professional relationships with the staff, to increase cultural awareness, provide meaningful and authentic teacher quality instructional feedback, and effective teacher support. Teachers felt the need to have additional necessary resources (mentors from the district and funding for targeted professional development) to retain them in urban schools.

School impact media studies indicate that a well-staffed and funded school library media program with a certified school library media specialist (SLMS) positively correlates with increased student achievement. SLMS must have a shared understanding of their roles and responsibilities to positively impact student success. In an effort to determine prior knowledge and differentiated learning objectives, the method of certification is critical for planning professional development. This dissertation presents a multi-method investigation of differences between Alternatively Certified (AC) and Traditionally Certified (TC) SLMS as it relates to their perceptions of collaboration, leadership and technology described in Information Power: Building Partnerships for Learning (1998). The overall findings were used to generate recommendations for SLMS professional development. Of 2350 total SLMS in Florida, 161 AC and 318 TC SLMS responded to an online job task analysis. The strength of association between method of certification and perceptions of job tasks under the three themes (collaboration, leadership, and technology) were compared using statistical analysis (i.e. variance, standard deviation, t-tests, chi-square tests, and ANOVA). Longitudinal comparisons were made between this study and baselines studies from 1996 and 2006. There were no significant differences between AC and TC overall perceptions of collaboration, leadership and technology as indicated by the job task analysis survey. Two tasks within collaboration and technology themes had large significant differences in AC and TC responses. TC SLMS were more likely to "Assist students and/or teachers with general references services (e.g., answer reference questions)" and to "Evaluate the adequacy and suitability of facilities, equipment, materials, and services with regard to their impact on learning outcomes." TC SLMS were significantly more familiar with IP2, made more attempts to implement IP2, and attended more in-services on IP2. Observations and interviews with two AC and two TC SLMS triangulated the survey data and explored questions related to professional development. Interview participants advocated for content developed by other SLMS and mentorship training. SLMS asserted that professional development should include school and county protocols, evaluation tools and methods, relevant and accessible technologies (i.e. school and district software, Student Information System, Library Databases Standards such as CORE Curriculum). The SLMS indicated a preference for the following professional development methods: SLMS designed and implemented professional development; formal and informal SLMS sharing; differentiation and options to opt-out based on prior experiences and expertise; relevant and accessible technology training; and mentorship. These findings inform ways to effectively recruit, train, certify, and differentiate instruction in SLMS programs and professional development courses. Furthermore, our qualitative findings indicate a need to examine the impact of reduced budgets on school library media programs. Future studies should investigate the impact of increased numbers of non-certified SLMS and cuts to library staff on student achievement and K-12 learning communities. While this study counted the total number of non-certified SLMS in addition to the AC and TC SLMS, results from the sample of non-certified SLMS collected during the job task analysis were not analyzed because it was too small for comparison or generalizability.

This study examined the process for implementation of the SB 1969 Staff Development in Sacramento City Unified School District. This case study focused on the implementation process from its inception in 1995 to the full implementation of training K–12 teachers during the 1997–98 school year. The data revealed that the policy implementation process occurred in three stages: (1) the planning phase, (2) the K–8 implementation phase, (3) the full K–12 implementation phase with modifications to the K–8 training component. The analysis revealed that local choices about how to proceed from policy to practice have had more significance for policy implementation than did policy features such as program design, funding levels, or governance requirements. The recommendations in this study are based on the research, findings, and conclusions. They include: (1) districts need to plan for policy implementation as a gradual process, (2) districts need to understand that successful implementation can only be achieved through a developmental process that consists of frequent reviews and modifications, (3) there must be an effective and committed group of people in the district guiding the implementation process, (4) districts must anticipate resistance to change by dealing with it accordingly, with flexibility built into the process, (5) the State must continue to provide an alternative means of credentialing teachers, who work with Limited English Proficient students in California. The recommendations for policy makers include: (1) policy makers should obtain information about policies directly from educators at the beginning of the policy development process; (2) policy makers should create liaisons with organized groups that represent the educational community in order to obtain feedback about policies affecting education; (3) policy makers need to ensure that they are obtaining information from the key stakeholders that will be affected by the educational policy, or gather information from other education-related organizations; (4) policy makers should utilize the internet, and other forms of communication to disseminate educational policy information.