Teacher quality, the top factor that determines student success, has been in the limelight in recent years (Camphire, 2003). It became an especially important issue in NCLB, which seeks to ensure that every teacher is highly qualified (has a bachelor's degree, full state certification or licensure, and is able to prove their knowledge of each subject they teach) by the school year of 2005–06. A decade ago, hardly a quarter of teachers felt they were highly qualified to teach science (Hoffman & Stage, 1993). In 2003, the situation was no different. States were at various points in their teacher quality requirement implementation. For example, Alaska had only 16 percent of its classes taught by highly qualified teachers, whereas Wisconsin had 98.6 percent (Keller, 2003). The U.S. Department of Education officials are saying that less than 50 percent of mathematics teachers have a major or minor in mathematics (Borsuk, 2003, p. 8A).
Naturally, with rigorous NCLB mandates, schools need a lot of assistance to ensure high teacher quality in the near future. To aid with the issues, on March 15, 2004, U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige issued a statement outlining flexible policies regarding teacher quality. One policy recognizes that some states allow their science teachers to be certified under a general science certification and that some require them to be certified in each science subject they teach. Therefore, the policies determining whether a science teacher is highly qualified or not will solely depend on each state's certification requirements, giving states more flexibility with their teacher quality cases (U. S. Department of Education, n.d.).
The National Research Council's Mathematics Study Committee defines teacher quality as proficiency in teaching (NRC, 1996; Camphire, 2003). Research agrees that what makes teachers effective is that they receive diversity training, possess understanding of the core knowledge, have fluency in instructional routines, have strategic competence in instruction, have adaptive reasoning in instructional practices, and have a positive and productive disposition toward the subject area as well as toward teaching and learning in general (NRC, 1996; Camphire, 2003; Parks, 1999).
Professional development needs of teachers should be addressed so that teachers can connect content in relevant ways to increase student understanding in mathematics and science (Murphy, 1996). An MSAN study in 2002, which determined that professional development is needed to help teachers understand how different student groups respond to instructional strategies, reveals several findings. For example, white students tend to work harder under teacher demands, while African-American or Hispanic students are more motivated and tend to work harder when teachers encourage them (MSAN, 2002). Findings such as MSAN's should be addressed at professional development settings to have an impact on teacher quality.
Return to "Remembering the Child: On Equity and Inclusion in Mathematics and Science Classrooms."
