Legislature(2021 - 2022)BUTROVICH 205
03/09/2022 09:00 AM Senate EDUCATION
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| Start | |
| SB225 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
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+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | SB 225 | TELECONFERENCED | |
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ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
March 9, 2022
9:04 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Roger Holland, Chair
Senator Gary Stevens, Vice Chair
Senator Shelley Hughes
Senator Tom Begich
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Peter Micciche
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
SENATE BILL NO. 225
"An Act relating to a paraprofessional training program;
creating a teacher resident certificate; creating a teacher
residency program; relating to requirements to issue a teacher
certificate; relating to subject-matter expert limited teacher
certificates; relating to limited teacher certificates; creating
a teacher registered apprenticeship program; and creating a
teacher registered apprenticeship program fund."
- HEARD & HELD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 225
SHORT TITLE: TEACHER REGISTERED APPRENTICE PROGRAMS
SPONSOR(s): EDUCATION
03/04/22 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
03/04/22 (S) EDC, L&C, FIN
03/07/22 (S) EDC AT 9:00 AM BUTROVICH 205
03/07/22 (S) Heard & Held
03/07/22 (S) MINUTE(EDC)
03/09/22 (S) EDC AT 9:00 AM BUTROVICH 205
WITNESS REGISTER
AMY VINLOVE, Director
School of Education
University of Alaska, Fairbanks
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented a PowerPoint from the University
of Alaska College of Education Consortium titled Working
Together to Prepare High Quality Educators for Alaska.
SCOTT MACMANUS, Superintendent
Alaska Gateway School District
Tok, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions on SB 225.
SONDRA MEREDITH, Teacher Certification Administrator
Teacher Certification Section
Department of Education and Early Development (DEED)
Juneau, Alaska,
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions on SB 225.
ACTION NARRATIVE
9:04:04 AM
CHAIR ROGER HOLLAND called the Senate Education Standing
Committee meeting to order at 9:04 a.m. Present at the call to
order were Senators Hughes, Begich, and Chair Holland. Senator
Stevens arrived shortly thereafter.
SB 225-TEACHER REGISTERED APPRENTICE PROGRAMS
9:04:40 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 225
"An Act relating to a paraprofessional training program;
creating a teacher resident certificate; creating a teacher
residency program; relating to requirements to issue a teacher
certificate; relating to subject-matter expert limited teacher
certificates; relating to limited teacher certificates; creating
a teacher registered apprenticeship program; and creating a
teacher registered apprenticeship program fund."
9:05:00 AM
SENATOR STEVENS arrived.
9:05:26 AM
AMY VINLOVE, Director, School of Education, University of
Alaska, Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska, stated she also has the
title of Chair of the University of Alaska College of Education
Consortium. She is a lifelong Alaskan who attended the
University of Alaska, Fairbanks. She has an undergraduate degree
in Education Studies and Public Policy. She decided to be a
teacher and completed a year-long post-baccalaureate program to
become a certified elementary school teacher. In addition to
substitute teaching, she taught for eight years. She was one of
the first people in Alaska to become nationally board certified
in middle child education and has received a Milken Educator
Award. She has worked at UAF in elementary teacher preparation
for over 20 years. She has worked all over the state with
interns. She has a doctorate through the University of Alaska in
Education and Policy. She mentioned various other educational
accomplishments.
9:08:48 AM
SENATOR STEVENS asked for a brief description of the consortium.
MS. VINLOVE replied that the consortium is the University of
Alaska's education program array working collaboratively to
ensure the needs of the state are being met. The consortium is
comprised of two council members from each university and Paul
Layer, Vice President of Academics, Students & Research. The
consortium meets every two weeks.
SENATOR STEVENS: asked when the organization was established.
MS. VINLOVE replied that it began in July 2021.
9:10:29 AM
SCOTT MACMANUS, Superintendent, Alaska Gateway School District,
Tok, Alaska, said he is a lifelong Alaskan and has been with the
school district for 24 years. He graduated from UAF's education
certificate program and has a degree in political science. He
taught across the state and was excited to hear about the new
education programs at the University of Alaska.
9:11:51 AM
MS. VINLOVE began the presentation on slide 2 which provided the
following definitions:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Initial preparation programs vs advanced preparation
programs: Initial preparation or licensure programs
provide someone with their first license to teach.
Advanced preparation programs provide an additional
endorsement or certification area. This is a key
distinction of our accrediting body, CAEP.
CAEP: Council for Accreditation of Educator
Preparation:
CAEP is one of two accrediting bodies for educator
preparation programs in the U.S. It is by far the
larger of the two (currently 431 CAEP accredited
programs vs. 57 accredited by AAQEP). All three UA
Schools of Education are currently CAEP accredited at
either the initial or advanced program level, or both.
GYO program:
GYO programs recruit and train teachers from within
local communities. There are many versions of GYO
programs across the US from high school programs to
paraprofessional-to-teacher programs.
Prepared to Teach:
Prepared to Teach is a national learning network based
at the Bank Street College of Education that helps
districts and universities collaborate to create
sustainable systems for fully funding high quality
teacher preparation. More on this later!
9:14:07 AM
MS. VINLOVE advanced to slide 3 to discuss the University of
Alaska's pathways to becoming a teacher. Becoming a teacher can
be viewed as one main pathway that can be entered at many
different points, thereby creating many pathways. It is
recognized across the nation that to be a teacher a person must
have graduated high school, received a four-year degree, and had
clinical fieldwork experience. Students can follow a traditional
approach or an innovative pathway, such as a middle college
program, career change, or post-bachelorette program.
9:14:57 AM
SENATOR BEGICH asked where an apprenticeship would fit and where
else should Alaska focus attention given its immediate need for
teachers.
9:15:31 AM
MS. VINLOVE said that an answer to the second question would be
forthcoming, but an apprenticeship would typically be associated
with a final internship. Internship, apprenticeship, and
residency are three terms that refer to a year-long approach to
certification by spending time in a classroom under the
supervision of a highly certified teacher. UA refers to them as
internships, but they are synonymous with an apprenticeship
program and the term residency. Apprenticeships can take more
than a year but typically take one year.
9:16:22 AM
SENATOR BEGICH stated his belief that the committee envisions an
apprenticeship that taps into paraprofessionals and is more
extended.
9:16:39 AM
MS. VINLOVE turned to slide 4 and said that the University of
Alaska (UA) offers early childhood, elementary, secondary, and
special education licensure programs, and there are 31 different
permutations of initial pathways within these content areas.
9:17:29 AM
SENATOR BEGICH asked if there is flexibility in the time and
means by which programs are offered.
MS. VINLOVE said there are many versions of the various
programs. For example, in the final year of UAF's elementary
program internship there are three different calendars. They
align with the Anchorage and Fairbanks school district calendars
and the distance delivery calendar across the state. Coursework
and teaching are typically interwoven and occur during the day.
The university receives feedback from students for both day and
nighttime classes. Student preference is for daytime; however,
some programs align with the needs of people who work full-time
during the day.
9:19:17 AM
SENATOR STEVENS remarked that the information presented was
important and asked if the number of students in the programs
would be given.
MS. VINLOVE replied no, but she could provide it.
9:19:37 AM
At ease.
9:19:58 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND reconvened the meeting.
9:20:06 AM
MS. VINLOVE said that UA also offers advanced education programs
for certified teachers who want additional endorsements or
certificates. There are 17 different permutations of the various
advanced pathways.
9:20:36 AM
MS. VINLOVE moved to slide 6, which provided an overview of the
university's many recruitment and marketing efforts to attract
people to its programs. Teachalaska.org is a single unified
website that helps students identify programs and career
pathways in education available to them. The university employs
system-wide search engine optimization, so UA's educational
programs appear in response to relevant searches. There is also
a system-wide social media and marketing approach to recruitment
and a local campus social media marketing campaign. Traditional
marketing methods such as radio are also used. Recruitment
efforts also target different points of entry.
MS. VINLOVE said that Educators Rising, dual enrollment
programs, and middle college programs are used to recruit high
school students. In contrast, paraprofessional-to-teacher
programs, recruitment from other majors, and ladder degree
progression pathways are recruitment methods for people with
more life experience.
9:24:15 AM
MS. VINLOVE advanced to slide 7 and stated that there is a
teacher shortage across the United States. Teacher preparation
program enrollment has declined since 2010 and was made worse
due to COVID. She said that 53 percent of students in their last
year of teaching reported being actively dissuaded from entering
the teaching profession. She stated that the pie graph shows
many reasons for discouragement, but finance was the primary
reason.
9:25:38 AM
SENATOR BEGICH asked if the university is doing anything to
allay financial costs for students entering the teaching
program. He said that the Alaska student loan program offered
forgiveness in the past.
MS. VINLOVE said that financial assistance would be discussed on
an upcoming slide.
9:26:48 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND asked if there was a known reason for the decline
in teachers starting from 2012 to 2015.
9:27:02 AM
MS. VINLOVE stated she would need to review the study but esteem
and financial constraints are primary concerns faced by the
teaching profession.
9:27:38 AM
MS. VINLOVE said that slides 9-12 provide profiles of four
students and the various barriers and pathways they took to
become teachers.
9:32:30 AM
MR. MACMANUS said that the Alaska Gateway School District (AGSD)
worked with UA and, in January 2022, held a meeting to discuss a
program that would allow school staff and people in the
community who have worked with students to become teachers. He
reported that 18 people attended the meeting and are now in
teacher pathway programs; the first to become a teacher will
graduate in spring 2022. He described the students' various
circumstances and the pathways they were using. He said that
teaching is one of the better jobs available in rural Alaska,
and pathway programs provide opportunities for residents to
improve their family situation, which previously was financially
or logistically difficult.
MR. MACMANUS stated that partnering with the university has led
to recruitment success for his district. When he began as a
superintendent in 2016, the employee turnover rate was 50-60
percent of certified instructional staff. For the past three
years, retention has been 90 percent. He qualified that this was
intentional retention because 34 out of 38 contracts were
returned within one week. He said that local teachers from the
program would fill two of the four positions needing to be
filled. He opined that recruitment success does not come by
focusing on the 20 percent who have decided they do not want to
be teachers. It comes from broadening the scope of people who
know they want to be teachers and providing a path so it is
possible, not easier. Alaska wants quality certified teachers
who are committed, engaging, and understand students' needs.
9:37:25 AM
SENATOR HUGHES said that student teaching is like a residency
program for physicians. She said resident physicians are paid
and asked whether teachers in the mentor program receive any
type of stipend and whether they pay tuition to student teach.
9:38:44 AM
MR. MACMANUS said the district's mentorship program covers
travel to Tok, housing, and non-certified substitute pay. The
university that the Alaska Gateway School District (AGSD) worked
with did not want the student to be paid or expenses covered, so
an agreement had to be reached. AGSD required the student to
stay the entire semester, attend in-service training, take
university classes and teach. AGSD did not pay for university
courses.
MR. MACMANUS agreed with Senator Hughes that students are
working and should be paid. He said the cost to the school
district was minimal, and although he does not have unlimited
funds, he plans to accept additional students in the future.
AGSD is working on a similar program with UAF. He opined that
mentorship programs need at least one semester, preferably an
entire school year. He said the district is committed to helping
the teaching profession; people should be paid for their work.
9:41:22 AM
MS. VINLOVE jumped to slide 24 and stated high quality teacher
education is critical, but affordability is key. Aspiring
teachers cannot work for free and learn how to teach well. The
Prepared to Teach National Learning Network is trying to help
facilitate and support conversations, planning and co-
construction programs between universities and districts to
figure out how to create sustainable braided funding streams for
high quality teacher preparation.
MS. VINLOVE said data shows that yearlong residencies result in
better teacher preparation and retention. Funding yearlong
residencies requires a look at reallocation, reduction, and
reinvestment of funds between the universities and school
districts to create sustainable systems of funding for high
quality teacher preparation.
9:42:57 AM
MS VINLOVE turned to slide 27 and said teacher turnover is a
huge cost driver in Alaska's schools and drives inequity in the
education of students. The pathways that teachers take directly
affect retention. Schools that have a yearlong embedded
residency find teachers remain working for the school district
longer. It also increases the diversity of the candidate pool.
However, money is the barrier to universal residency because it
is difficult for candidates to work for free. It also creates
inequitable access to quality preparation because of the costs.
Fast-track programs that put candidates into a classroom before
being prepared can create reverse incentives for the system.
9:43:50 AM
MS. VINLOVE turned to slide 28 and said that a system redesign
is what universities and school districts are working toward.
She then spoke about the following principles for system
redesign:
[Original punctuation provided.]
1. Mutually beneficial partnerships braid resources
across the system
2. Redesign of school roles pays residents for
instructional supports
3. Access to financial aid and streamlined coursework
reduces candidate costs
4. Equalizing pay with fast-track programs
incentivizes enrollment
5. Investing in learning networks spreads promising
practices.
9:45:23 AM
MS. VINLOVE offered the University of Wisconsin's teaching
program as an example of university redesign. Students who
graduate receive loan forgiveness for teaching in Wisconsin
following graduation. She said UA is working on an exciting
collaborative model of redesign. Various organizations want to
support students in becoming teachers, but coordinating is
difficult. Therefore, UA is working with school districts and
external organizations on a collaborative model to help students
identify funding streams based on their student profiles.
Apprenticeships through the Department of Labor are another
potential source of system redesign funding.
9:47:42 AM
SENATOR BEGICH noted that the Begich scholarship was listed as a
funding source and disclosed that he received no monetary
benefit from the presentation. He asked if state law would need
to be changed for a loan forgiveness program like Wisconsin's to
be possible in Alaska.
MS. VINLOVE replied the program is within the University of
Wisconsin's system. She stated she does not know if the program
would function internally within the University of Alaska or
externally with the state.
SENATOR BEGICH stated that the Lower Kuskokwim School District
(LKSD) spends about $5.5 million on energy costs. LKSD must
divert money from operating expenses to pay for energy, which is
the case for most rural schools. He asked how schools struggling
to pay energy bills will redesign system funding. He opined that
diverting funds will benefit urban schools more than rural
schools.
9:49:18 AM
MS. VINLOVE responded that she could not speak to every school
district. However, LKSD ran numbers and determined a couple of
years ago that the school district was better off allocating
out-of-state recruitment funds to internships due to the high
turnover rate of out-of-state hires.
9:49:59 AM
SENATOR STEVENS asked why the university was resistant to AGSD
providing a stipend to its intern.
9:50:33 AM
MR. MACMANTUS said he and a former colleague with ties to the
university developed the idea of an internship at AGSD. The
university's Department of Education was resistant to paid
student internships because student teaching historically does
not receive pay. He convinced the department that the internship
position should be compensated. He stated that as a student
teacher at McKinley Alternative in 1987, he was required by the
school to teach for a year unpaid, which he could afford.
Teaching for an entire year prepared him to enter the teaching
profession. Not all students can afford a year without pay, and
students who enter teaching unprepared are likelier to leave the
profession. A passion for making a difference is the number one
reason given for being a teacher, not money. He opined that it
is up to the legislature, the university, and school
administrators to prepare teachers so they will stay and make a
difference.
9:54:06 AM
MS. VINLOVE moved back to slide 13 and stated that UA's initial
licensure program integrates coursework and fieldwork, then
follows up with assessments. The next three slides show the
coursework and fieldwork components of various pathways for
licensure.
9:56:18 AM
MS. VINLOVE turned to slide 17 and said the university created
laddered degree progression pathways to help students take
incremental steps to achieve a bachelor's degree. Students first
work towards receiving a certificate. The certificate credits
count towards credits needed for an associate degree, which then
roll into the required credits for a bachelor's degree.
9:57:18 AM
MS. VINLOVE said teachers are taught how to facilitate learning
that fosters 21st-century skills, along with how to teach
academic content. The learning cycle model provides four
sequential steps to become proficient: introduce, prepare,
enact, and analyze. She offered an example of each step from a
course she previously taught.
9:59:00 AM
MS. VINLOVE advanced to slide 19 and stated that UA has strict
accreditation requirements for monitoring candidate progress.
The assessments must be valid and reliable. Accreditation
standards for assessments are:
• Content validity established with P-12 stakeholders to
ensure the right things are being assessed
• Established and documented inter-rater reliability
• Multiple evaluators to triangulate data
• Articulated criteria for program progression at program
transition points
• Alignment with established standards
There are four key assessments used throughout the final year of
preparation in UA's initial licensure programs, with specific
criteria that must be met:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Field-based assessment
The Skills of Teaching Observation Tool is utilized
throughout the final year of preparation by mentor
teacher, supervisor, faculty and student self
assessment
Professional characteristics
Candidates are assessed at multiple points by multiple
people on their dispositions relative to those of
practicing teachers
Culminating performance assessment
All programs employ a culminating performance based
assessment that evaluates candidate planning,
implementation, assessment and impact on student
learning through evidence and video
State certification exams
Praxis, basic competency exams
Subject or district specific assessments Vary by
pathway or partnership
MS. VINLOVE moved to slide 20 and said the university's
Department of Education must also have a robust quality
assurance system to demonstrate that it is engaged in a
continuous improvement process. She provided an example of the
process and said UAF has a quality assurance hub website. CAEP
accreditation standards also require constant improvement and
quality assurance through external advisory committees, review
meetings, and tracking improvement and data changes. Graduates
are also evaluated in the workplace through graduate surveys,
employer surveys, and case studies.
10:04:44 AM
MS. VINLOVE stated that evidence shows that people are happy
with the preparation at UA. She said the university receives
consistent positive feedback on its programs from students,
graduates, alumni and employers. Ninety-six percent of surveyed
in-service teachers say the rewards of teaching are worth the
effort of their teacher education program.
10:05:12 AM
MS. VINLOVE said the table on slide 22 provides a broad overview
of program costs. She mentioned that tuition and fees vary
depending on lower and upper-division credits. Also, a one or
two-year program is much cheaper than a four-year pathway.
10:05:39 AM
SENATOR STEVENS stated he knows there are differences between
education programs at UA's campuses and recognizes that pathways
broaden the entrance to the teaching profession. He asked for an
explanation for why the University of Alaska Southeast (UAS) has
a two-year program but the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA)
and University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) have a four year
requirement.
MS. VINLOVE replied that the programs at the top of the chart
are bachelor programs while the bottom are two-year programs for
people who already have bachelor's degrees. Almost all of the
two year programs can be completed in one year if a student
aggressively pursues the coursework.
10:06:57 AM
SENATOR STEVENS asked if the programs are producing quality
teachers.
MS. VINLOVE replied that the two-year programs are high quality
and are based on a yearlong internship. The programs require
some coursework to be completed the summer before the internship
starts. The student becomes a licensed teacher at the end of the
year and can elect to pursue a master's degree by taking
additional credits.
10:07:34 AM
MS. VINLOVE said that barriers to the preparation and graduation
of high-quality teachers for Alaska's schools are money and
difficulty with basic competency exams.
10:08:09 AM
SENATOR BEGICH referred to slide 23 and asked what it means to
re-think standardized basic competency exams.
10:08:26 AM
MS. VINLOVE advanced to slide 35 and replied that the Praxis
core exam is a barrier to becoming a certified teacher for many
students. No correlation exists between the ability to pass the
test and effective teaching in the classroom. Students taking
the exam have already completed a four-year degree program. The
exams are used for diagnostic purposes to identify areas where
school administrators could offer additional training for
teachers. The exams have been shown to keep the wrong people out
of the profession. Black, Latino, and Alaska Native students'
pass rates are lower than White peers, resulting in fewer
candidates of color and stymied efforts to diversify the
teaching workforce. During COVID, students were not required to
take the Praxis tests to graduate. Instead, they were issued
emergency certificates, but they will need to take the Praxis
tests once their emergency certificate expires. She said this
gives the state an opportunity to collect data and evaluate how
effective these teachers are in the classroom based on teacher
evaluations before knowing their ability to pass the exams.
MS. VINLOVE moved to slide 36 and shared stories of Alaskans
impacted by the testing requirements.
10:12:47 AM
MS. VINLOVE said in 2019, the Washington State Legislature
removed the requirement to meet a minimum passing score but will
still use the test results in teacher preparation programs as a
formative assessment of academic ability in determining
readiness.
10:13:14 AM
SENATOR BEGICH stated he took the PSAT test in high school and
did not do well because of anxiety. He said he could not pass
the Praxis algebra test, so he could not teach. He opined that
the tests are significant barriers for teachers who want to
teach a particular subject but cannot pass a different subject
area of the required test.
CHAIR HOLLAND said that is what happened to the student Ms.
Vinlove described earlier in the presentation. The student
wanted to be a second-grade teacher but could not pass the
algebra portion of an exam and, therefore, could not teach.
10:14:11 AM
MS. VINLOVE returned to slide 25 and said that higher quality
teacher preparation leads to higher professional retention
rates. The university works with Prepared to Teach and partners
with the Alaska Gateway, Anchorage, and Fairbanks school
districts. It is also continuing partnerships with the Bering
Strait and Lower Kuskokwim school districts to look towards
braided funding streams providing sustainable systems that
financially support teacher education candidates with tuition
and living costs. Living costs account for up to two-thirds of a
student's educational expenses but are seldom defrayed through
scholarships like tuition.
10:15:17 AM
MS. VINLOVE moved to slide 30 and said the university envisions
Alaska using a market-based collaborative model. Different
programs at all three UA locations would partner with various
school districts to create and ensure braided funding streams
that meet the financial needs of students. The partnerships
would also create preparation programs that are deeply tied to
the needs of specific school districts. It is envisioned that a
school district would work with several UA teacher programs to
fill its needs. She provided an example of Tennessee working
with Austin Peay State University's undergraduate pathway
program.
10:17:30 AM
MS. VINLOVE turned to slide 31 and said the Department of Labor
could potentially be a funding stream for education students.
The teaching profession is an apprenticeable profession by
federal regulation. If Alaska made teacher apprenticeships
possible, over a billion dollars in unused federal workforce
funding could be tapped for individuals to become teachers. In
contrast, the federal government spends $100 million on Teacher
Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH)
grants. More federal money is expected to flow into the
Department of Labor specifically for teacher apprenticeships.
Slide 33 provides a graphic depicting the roles and
relationships of the US Department of Labor, schools, and higher
education institutions in creating a teacher apprenticeship
program.
MS. VINLOVE said partnerships need to mobilize to capitalize on
the opportunity and ensure apprenticeships are high-quality
accessible paths to teaching. Slide 34 provides requirements for
residency apprenticeships.
10:19:15 AM
SENATOR HUGHES opined that, from her experience, student
teaching appeared to be more about checking off boxes to receive
credit than learning to teach. The school district also did not
appear to be invested in ensuring the student teacher became a
great teacher. She asked if there was a way to combine the
concept of student teaching with an internship so that it would
be more meaningful and enable students to receive a stipend. She
asked if the residency program would follow a year of student
teaching.
MS. VINLOVE indicated that the residency would be the year of
student teaching.
SENATOR HUGHES said that a year of residency is good because she
can see how a student might finish the degree but never enter a
classroom to teach. She mentioned that she and her husband
returned to Alaska after graduating because of student loan
forgiveness. She said the requirement to work first and then
receive forgiveness was integral to staying in Alaska and is
something the university should consider.
10:21:49 AM
SENATOR BEGICH stated his belief that the Finance Committee
would be open to hearing about teacher apprenticeships. Senator
Bishop mentioned his desire to find ways to access unspent
federal Department of Labor funds when SB 111 was being
discussed.
10:22:26 AM
SENATOR STEVENS said the state was shocked when UAA lost its
accreditation for its school of education. He asked how the loss
affected students entering UAA and does UAA plan to work toward
accreditation.
10:23:02 AM
MS. VINLOVE replied that UAA is accredited under CAEP for
advanced program pathways. Initial licensure pathways recently
received approval from the State Department of Education to open
a four-year degree program. UAA faced a chicken and egg-
situation because students were needed to pursue accreditation,
but permission to enroll them was necessary before accreditation
could be sought. Now that UAA has permission, it will have the
opportunity to apply for initial licensure accreditation a few
years after the degree pathway begins. In the meantime, UAF has
faculty that live and work in Anchorage and offers face-to-face
courses in all its initial licensure pathway programs. UAS also
offers initial licensure programs through distance delivery and
has faculty based in Anchorage. There has never been a gap at
UAA in the ability for students to receive initial licensure
through the University of Alaska. UA marshaled its forces and
worked collaboratively, making it possible for students from UAA
to graduate without having to move from Anchorage.
10:25:12 AM
SENATOR BEGICH stated that it is important to note that the
decline in the number of teachers nationally corresponds with
the decreasing number of education graduates at UA. While UA was
faulted for the decrease, it appears the drop reflects a
national trend. Therefore, it is incumbent upon the legislature
to figure out a way to change that trend.
10:25:58 AM
SENATOR HUGHES said Alaska's score requirements for the Praxis
competency exam are lower than other states. She understands
that students with English as a second language may have
difficulty with the reading assessment. In SB 111, different
pathways for assessment were allowed to accommodate testing
issues such as anxiety and language. However, it is important to
establish competency. She asked if alternative testing has been
investigated to ensure teachers are adequately competent in
their field.
10:27:31 AM
MS. VINLOVE replied that teachers must take a basic competency
and content area-specific exams. A teacher wanting to teach
secondary school chemistry would need to take a content area-
specific exam to demonstrate competency or have a major in
chemistry. Praxis II tests are different from Praxis core. She
clarified that it is the basic competency test that some
students have difficulty passing.
10:28:26 AM
SENATOR HUGHES asked if the department is suggesting getting rid
of competency exams. She wondered whether alternatives are being
developed to ensure teachers are competent at a core level.
10:28:51 AM
MS. VINLOVE replied that there are alternative pathways for the
basic competency and content area exams. However, all
alternatives for basic competency involve a standardized timed
test.
10:29:07 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND asked Sondra Meredith to comment.
10:29:21 AM
SONDRA MEREDITH, Teacher Certification Administrator, Teacher
Certification Section, Department of Education and Early
Development (DEED), Juneau, Alaska, replied that in Washington
state, universities have been given the ability to develop
alternative pathways for proving teacher proficiency when a
candidate has difficulty passing the basic competency exam.
Alaska could choose to use a similar mechanism.
10:30:22 AM
MR. MACMANUS stated he appreciates the committee's time and is
excited about the possibility of teacher apprenticeships using
funds from the Department of Labor. He also thanked the
university for its role and leadership in finding solutions to
putting quality teachers in Alaska's classrooms. He is glad to
be a part of finding those solutions.
10:31:21 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND asked Mr. Macmanus if he believes teacher
apprenticeships are possible in rural areas through remote
access.
10:31:46 AM
MR. MACMANUS replied that persistence is a useful trait, and he
believes it is possible because he has seen it done. There is
value in meeting teachers and students face to face. Still,
there is also the reality that some students are forty years old
with families to support, making attendance at university
campuses difficult. Opportunities exist for these individuals.
He especially likes the hands-on component of internships in the
classroom.
10:32:43 AM
MS. VINLOVE expressed that it is an exciting time to pursue
opportunities that strengthen connections between universities
and school districts. Schools are at a critical point in
history. If Alaska's agencies, school districts, and
universities do not work together, schools will not have
teachers. A lack of teachers incentivizes a much deeper level of
collaboration and mutually beneficial partnership.
10:33:26 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND asked where the website location is for people
interested in educational opportunities.
MS. VINLOVE replied the website is teachalaska.org.
10:33:49 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND held SB 225 in committee.
10:33:56 AM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Holland adjourned the Senate Education Standing Committee
meeting at 10:33 a.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB 225 Foundational Info - U of A programs.pdf |
SEDC 3/9/2022 9:00:00 AM |
SB 225 |