The hiring of non-highly qualified teachers within the State of Georgia

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to take this chance to give thanks to my research supervisor, my family and my friends for their assistance, support, and direction without which this research study would not have been possible.

DECLARATION

I [type your full first names and surname here], declare that the contents of this dissertation/thesis represent my own unaided work, and that the dissertation/thesis has not previously been submitted for academic examination towards any qualification. Furthermore, it represents my own opinions and not necessarily those of the University.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTII

DECLARATIONIII

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION1

1.1 Introduction1

1.2 Definition of the Problem4

1.3 Rationale for conducting the study5

1.3.1 Evidence of existence of non-highly qualified teachers in the State of Georgia6

1.3.2 Evidence of the Problem in literature7

1.4 Definitions9

1.5 Significance11

1.6 Guiding/Research Questions12

1.7 Review of the Literature12

1.7.1 Teacher Support through Professional Development13

1.7.2 Alternative Certification Programs19

1.8 Implications24

1.9 Summary25

REFERENCES27

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Introduction

Since the onset of No Child Left Behind Act ([NCLB], 2001), school districts across the United States have been forced to raise their standards for the basic operation of schools. One area that was most affected was the recruitment of qualified educators to teach in the public school system. Attempts to hire teachers that were considered high qualified, however, was not a new quest. State and district officials began this process in the early 1980's with pioneering states California, New Jersey, and Texas in an effort to staff inner city schools with quality educators (National Center for Alternative Certification, 2010). Under its current guidelines, NCLB (2001), mandates that teachers must be highly qualified in order to maintain employment within a public school. This mandate was put into effect after studies in both Tennessee and Texas showed that students that were taught by a highly qualified teacher outperformed those that were not taught by a teacher that is considered to be highly qualified (Center for Public Education, 2005). In fact, those studies further revealed that students taught by an unqualified teacher scored an average of 50% lower over a 3-year period in subjects such as science and mathematics. Similar declines in student achievement, continued to rise in other states across America; however, it was ubiquitous in high poverty and low socioeconomic environments.

In 2006, Hogland-Smith proposed

“The hiring of non-qualified teachers appears to be a more prevalent practice than many taxpayers realize. Parents, citizens and students, presume that their teachers are fully qualified. This practice of hiring non-qualified teachers has contributed to the significant under-education of American children especially those in urban schools.” (Pp. 6)

To offset the problem of non-highly qualified teachers, the federal mandate NCLB (2001) through its “highly qualified teacher” (HQT) provisions, requires all teachers to have at least a bachelor's degree, full state certification, and to demonstrate knowledge of the subject matter they teach. In order for a teacher to be considered highly qualified, they must meet the requirement for full certification within the state that they teach. The goal of the program is to place an emphasis on teacher ...