National Board Certification: Is it worth the time and expense?

Studies pertaining to the effectiveness of NBPTS-certified teachers are ongoing. Here is a partial list. Advanced Teacher Certification http://www.education-consumers.com/Cunningham-Stone.pdf Evidence that there is any educationally meaningful advantage to certification by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards is still lacking.  [Cunningham, G. K. & Stone, J. E. (2005). Value-added assessment of teacher quality as an alternative to the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards: What recent studies say.  In Robert Lissitz (Ed.). Value added models in education: Theory and applications. Maple … Read More

Professionalism and the Public Good

Professionalism and the Public Good: A Brief History of Teacher Certification (click here for full article) (Click here to download the PDF of this article) By David L. Angus Edited by Jeffrey Mirel Washington, DC: Thomas B. Fordham Foundation, 2001   Briefing Good teaching really makes a difference. Studies of teacher effectiveness show that students who get the best teachers have a significantly greater chance of succeeding in school. But does publicly regulated teacher training and licensure assure … Read More

Teacher Certification Reconsidered

Teacher Certification Reconsidered: Stumbling for Quality (click here for full article) (Click here to download the PDF of this article) By Kate Walsh Baltimore, MD: The Abell Foundation, October, 2001.   Briefing Policymakers and the public assume that trained and certified teachers are better teachers. Aspiring teachers spend years taking education courses. Billions are spent on training programs. Public schools in all states are required to hire certified teachers. But is there evidence that trained and certified (some … Read More

Meeting the Highly Qualified Teachers Challenge

(click here for full article) (Click here to download the PDF of this article) The Secretary’s Annual Report on Teacher Quality Office of Postsecondary Education Washington, DC: U. S. Department of Education, 2002   Briefing Meeting the Highly Qualified Teachers Challenge is a U. S. Department of Education (USDOE) report on the quality of America’s teacher training. Drawing upon the data compiled under Title II of the 1998 Higher Education Act, the report is a guide to the … Read More

Private Sector Alternatives for Preventing Reading Failure

Groff, P.  (1987).  Private sector alternatives for preventing reading failure, Washington, DC:  National Advisory Council on Educational Research and Improvement. Editor’s note:  Chapters IV-VI contain outdated names, addresses, and references, and therefore were omitted _________________ A directory of national organizations providing a rationale for their need;  An assessment of the professional training they provide for prospective or inservice teachers of reading By Patrick Groff, Professor of Education San Diego State University   I. Introduction The major purpose of … Read More

Preventing Reading Failure

Private Sector Alternatives for Preventing Reading Failure (click here for full article) (Click here to download the PDF of this article) By Patrick Groff Professor, San Diego State University Washington, DC: National Advisory Council on Educational Research and Improvement, 1987.   Briefing The No Child Left Behind Act calls for greater reliance on rigorous educational research. But is a shortage of rigorous studies the real problem? In 1987, Professor Patrick Groff reported that the U. S. was experiencing … Read More

Sample Opinion 1

A “Second Opinion” Regarding Implementation of the Nebraska Partnership for Quality Education Project September 9, 1999 George K. Cunningham, Ph.D. College of Education University of Louisville J.E. Stone, Ed.D. College of Education East Tennessee State University Martin Kozloff, Ph.D. Watson School of Education University of North Carolina – Wilmington all of the Education Consumers Consultant Network At the request of Ann Mactier–member of the Nebraska Board of Education–the Nebraska Partnership for Quality Education proposal was examined by the … Read More

Teaching Skill Under Scrutiny

(click here for full article) (Click here to download the PDF of this article) By W. James Popham, Past President, American Educational Research Association; Founding Editor, Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis; Professor Emeritus, UCLA. Phi Delta Kappan, 53(1), 1971, 599-602.   Briefing It has been an unquestioned article of faith among education professors that teachers who complete a lengthy menu of pedagogical courses are more effective in the classroom. A 2001 report by Kate Walsh of the Baltimore-based … Read More

Issues in Public Education

posted in: Briefings & Reports |

Policy Analyses by J.E. Stone, Ed.D. Research and Analysis A great deal of research and policy analysis is available and its ostensive purpose is to improve public education.  The problem, however, is that almost all of it is produced by and for educators, not consumers.  As a result, it tends to serve the aims and purposes of its educator audience, not those of the consuming public.  In general, the public want schools to produce better student learning outcomes.  … Read More

For Media

About the Education Consumers Foundation The Education Consumers Foundation (ECF) is a tax-exempt nonprofit corporation chartered in Tennessee. It is a spin-off of the Education Consumers ClearingHouse (ECC)—an online consumer organization founded in 1995.  ECF is dedicated to representing the interests of parents. taxpayers, and their elected representatives.  Its mission is to improve public education outcomes through the use of research and policy analysis.  ECF is like Consumer Reports but focused primarily on education policy, practice, and outcomes.   … Read More