Online extras
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Video essay, part 1: Three new teachers discuss their classrooms, how their education prepared them and the effect of a school's location on student discipline.
Click here »
Video essay, part 2: They face special education with confidence, but three new teachers know there's a wide range of students with different needs.
Click here »
Video essay, part 3: How prepared are new instructors to meet teacher requirements and students' academic goals? Three new teachers tackle standards.
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Video essay, part 4: Perhaps the most challenging aspect of teaching isn't dealing with students; it's with their parents.
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Video essays, part 5: The three new teachers reflect on the past year and talk about their futures in education.
 Dani Broe »
Stephanie Leija »
Erin O'Grady »
Why teaching? Three newcomers to the profession explain why they want to be in the classroom.
Erin O'Grady »
Stephanie Leija »
Dani Broe »
Photo essay: A look inside the classrooms. Click here »
Reader forum: Does Colorado prepare its teachers well? Sound off on the state of education. Click here »
Teacher standards: A look at what new teachers must know to earn licensure. Click here »
Colorado Senate Bill 154: In 1999, Gov. Bill Owens signed into law a bill concerning performance-based teaching programs.
Click here »
360° photography: Virtual reality photos show how classroom set-ups affect discipline. Click here »
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About this series
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This is the third part in a series examining teacher preparation in Colorado through the eyes of two young teachers and one college senior preparing for a teaching career.
This report illustrates how well first-year teachers are equipped to meet teacher and student academic standards.
The first installment details how prepared teachers are to deal with classroom discipline and management.
First installment »
The second installment examines the formidable challenge young teachers face from special education and first-time English learners.
Second installment »
The fourth installment deals with teachers' abilities to interact with parents and the community.
Fourth installment »
The fifth installment looks at the past year in the teachers' own words.
Fifth installment »
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How prepared are Colorado teachers?
Elementary teachers
74.5% of first-year elementary teachers say the major they chose gave them the subject knowledge they needed in the classroom.
60.3% of first-year elementary teachers said the preparation they received from college prepared them to teach writing strategies.
71.5% of first-year elementary teachers said they were prepared to teach math.
Secondary teachers
61% of first-year secondary teachers said they were well prepared to teach writing strategies.
90.9% of first-year secondary teachers said the major they choose gave them the subject knowledge they needed in the classroom.
58.5% of first-year secondary teachers said they were well prepared to teach standard English language usage.
All first-year teachers
19.4% are not licensed to teach in areas they're teaching
16.1% did not plan or teach entire class lessons before student teaching.
25.8% report not being prepared to handle classroom management.
37.1% report not being prepared to handle student discipline.
50% report not being often observed or given feedback by their peers.
17.7% report that they were not encouraged to take risks .
21.3% of teachers rated their teacher preparation programs a 3 on a scale of 5.
52.5% rated their preparation a 4.
26.2% rated their program a 5.
Principals rated new teachers at 4.29
How Americans perceive teachers
91% of Americans believe knowing how to manage a classroom is very important for an excellent teacher.
90% believe a teacher must be thoroughly educated in the subjects they will teach
53% of Americans believe the teachers where they live are well qualified
2% believe the teachers in their area are unqualified.
62% of Americans rate teaching as a profession with the most benefit to society compared to 22 percent for doctors and 2 percent for lawyers.
35% would recommend teaching as a career.
45% of Americans would recommend being a doctor as a career to a family member.
Sources: November 2001 CCHE survey of first- and third-year teachers; February 2000 First Year Teacher Study by the Research and Development Center For the Advancement of Student Learning; The Essential Profession: A National Survey of Public Attitudes Toward Teachers, Educational Opportunity and School Reform by Recruiting New Teachers, Inc., 2001
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