An Evaluation of the Teacher Certification Process - Research Paper Example

In this paper, I will endeavor to discuss the traditional route for attaining a teaching certificate, and the alternative routes available to becoming a teacher. Certification, from the very essence of the word, pertains to the process wherein students receive a professional credit from their colleges or universities for completing all the requirements of their curriculum and for being a graduate of their program. Normally, students receive a professional certification through engaging in a four-year college or university degree, which is basically the same for the standard teacher certification route.

In the standard route, also called traditional certification process, students have to take a four-year college or university bachelor’s degree (for instance education courses), complete all the requirements from different subjects, serve as a student teacher for a certain number of months under the guidance of a certified classroom teacher, and take the state mandated teaching certification test to obtain a teaching license (Steeley, 2010). The standard certification route requires students to complete a bachelor’s degree with a carefully planned coursework, which means that there are obligatory subjects that students have to take each year of their studies (Teachers Support, 2011).

For example, during the first year of their studies students are required to take fundamental courses in English, science, math, and history, or sometimes categorized as the general education courses. In the second year, the students have to take major courses in education, or courses which are more centered on the subject of education, for instance theories in teaching, psychology of teaching, and others. Teaching methods will then be the focus of the students’ third and fourth years, and two of the most critical parts of these teaching methods are the teacher training program and the supervised student teaching.

After the completion of all the bachelor degree’s requirements, the students are expected to take and pass the state mandated standard teaching certification examination. The traditional route for obtaining a teaching certificate is perceived to be most suitable for students who just graduated high school and are pursuing a college education in teaching (Watts, 2008). Since this type of teacher certification sets the highest requirements for teachers, this route is basically appropriate for those students who have the time and financial capabilities to support their studies.

On the other hand, the alternative, or non-traditional, routes for obtaining a teacher certification is designed for those individuals who have not completed a four-year bachelor’s degree in education through a university or college but are interested in attaining a certificate in teaching. It might be that these individuals who are seeking for alternative route teaching certificate have already completed a bachelor’s or master’s degree in a different field, or career changers (Teachers Support, 2011).

Furthermore, the alternative routes to certification suit those people who lack the time and money to go through the traditional certification process. The various alternative routes for obtaining a teaching certificate have surfaced due to the alleged shortage of teachers (Steeley, 2010). Due to the highly competitive standards set