Retaining students of color in a teacher education program
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Date
2019-01-01
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School of Public Policy
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Public Policy
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Access limited to the UMBC community. Item may possibly be obtained via Interlibrary Loan thorugh a local library, pending author/copyright holder's permission.
This item is likely protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. Unless on a Creative Commons license, for uses protected by Copyright Law, contact the copyright holder or the author.
Abstract
The large and persistent diversity gap between teachers and students in public schools in the United States has been linked to differences in educational outcomes for students of color. Closing this gap will require a broad effort focused on the recruitment and preparation of teachers of color, and also on the retention of these teachers once they enter the teaching workforce. To advance the former of these goals, this mixed methods study investigated the experiences and academic persistence of students of color who began coursework in the teacher education program at a public research university. Specifically, data provided by the university’s department of Institutional Research, Analysis, and Decision Support were used to identify factors influencing the progress of a cohort of students from initial coursework in education to completion of the teacher certification program. To supplement this quantitative data, semi-structured focus groups and individual interviews were conducted with 12 alumni of color, eight of whom completed the teacher certification program and four who did not. The quantitative analysis revealed that even when controlling for gender, academic background, and student support, race/ethnicity played a significant role in determining the likelihood of students completing the education program. That is, African American/Black and Hispanic students were less likely than Asian and White students to complete education program requirements (although race/ethnicity did not predict their completion of bachelor’s degrees at the university). Focus groups and interviews provided an additional layer of detail and insight. Alumni faced a range of obstacles and challenges in the program and yet spoke, almost without exception, about being motivated to become teachers out of a desire to "make a difference” in the lives of children. The findings from this exploratory study highlight the need for intentional, multi-dimensional recruitment and retention policies and practices to address the current diversity gap in teacher preparation and the field of education. The study also underscores the need for additional research that explores the experiences of teacher candidates of color, and the conditions and supports that influence their progress, across a range of education programs and universities.