NPR's segment on New Teachers

This morning on NPR was a segment about new teachers in alternative certification programs in DC. They highlighted two first-year teachers at Shaw-Garnet-Patterson. One is having a great year, and the other admitted not having classroom control. He even calls parents during the lesson at times, which he knows is a big no-no. The segment stated that Rhee does not have a lot of patience, so the second teacher does not have a lot of time to get it together.

The segment ended by saying that older teachers are necessary to help younger teachers develop.

There was one part of the segment that needs to be clarified. The effective first-year teacher that they highlighted teaches 6th grade and all of her students tested proficient in reading so far this year. That statement was misleading. Because the segment focused on her, those outside the field of eduation might automatically think the students learned to read because of this teacher. However, if 6th GRADERS are proficient in reading, they've had several years of good teaching. They didn't just learn how to read because of this first-year teacher.