Preparation for the Classroom: Nevada
Alternate Routes Policy
Analysis of Nevada's policies
Nevada's Commission on Professional Standards authorizes districts, colleges and universities, and private providers to offer alternate routes to licensure.
Coursework Requirements: Nevada requires candidates seeking conditional licensure through an alternate route to complete 18 semester credits of targeted coursework within the following areas: classroom management, English as a second language, curriculum and instruction, assessment, teaching students with disabilities, and subject area methods and materials.
Induction Support: Nevada requires its alternate route providers to "provide supervised, school-based experiences and ongoing support for its students, such as mentoring and coaching." The state requires alternate route providers to offer a detailed description of how the school-based experience requirement will be met, including the length; how participants will be mentored and evaluated; and how the experience promotes effectiveness.
Supervised Practice Teaching Requirements: Nevada does not require its alternate route providers to ensure that candidates participate in a supervised practice teaching opportunity during their preparation.
Recommendations for Nevada
Ensure that new teachers are not burdened by excessive requirements
While Nevada is commended for articulating guidelines regarding the nature of the coursework required of alternate route candidates, the state should ensure that alternate route programs do not overburden the new teacher by requiring multiple courses to be taken simultaneously during the school year.
Strengthen the induction experience for new teachers.
Although Nevada requires all new teachers to take part in a supervised school-based experience, it is unclear that this program is structured for new teacher success. The state should ensure that new teachers are provided with a strong induction experience by providing for: intensive mentoring with full classroom support in the first few weeks or months of school, a reduced teaching load, and release time to allow new teachers to observe experienced teachers during the school day.
Require opportunities for candidates to practice teach.
In addition to intensive induction support, Nevada should provide its candidates with a practice teaching opportunity prior to their placement in the classroom.
State response to our analysis
Nevada was helpful in providing facts that enhanced this analysis.
Nevada asserted that the alternate route provider application is required to include "A detailed description of how the provider will meet the school-based experience requirement mandated by Nevada legislation."
Updated: December 2017
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Nevada
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General Teacher Preparation
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- Teacher Shortages and Surpluses
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- Program Reporting Requirements
- Student Teaching/Clinical Practice
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Elementary Teacher Preparation
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- Middle School Content Knowledge
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Special Education Teacher Preparation
Alternate Routes
Hiring
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Teacher and Principal Evaluation
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Retaining Effective Teachers
Early Childhood Preparation
How we graded
5B: Preparation for the Classroom
- Practice Teaching: The state should require a supervised practice-teaching experience.
- Induction: The state should require that all new teachers receive intensive induction support.
- Manageable Coursework: The state should ensure that the amount of coursework it either requires or allows is manageable for a novice teacher. Anything exceeding 12 credit hours may be counterproductive, placing too great a burden on the teacher. This calculation is premised on no more than six credit hours in the summer, three credit hours in the spring, and three credit hours in the fall.
- Targeted Coursework: The state should ensure that all coursework requirements are targeted to the immediate needs of the new teacher (e.g., seminars with other grade-level teachers, classroom management techniques, training in a particular curriculum, reading instruction).
The total goal score is earned based on the following:
- Full credit: The state will earn the full point if all four elements are required for all alternate route programs.
- Three-quarters credit: The state will earn three-quarters of a point if three elements are required for all alternate route programs.
- One-half credit: The state will earn one-half of a point if two elements are required for at least some of the state's alternate route programs.
- One-quarter credit: The state will earn one-quarter of a point if one element is required for at least one of the state's alternate route programs.
Research rationale
Alternate route programs must provide practical, meaningful preparation that is sensitive to a new teacher's workload and stress level. Too many states have policies requiring alternate route programs to "backload" large amounts of traditional education coursework, thereby preventing the emergence of real alternatives to traditional preparation. This issue is especially important given the large proportion of alternate route teachers who complete this coursework while teaching. Alternate route teachers often have to deal with the stresses of beginning to teach while also completing required coursework in the evenings and on weekends.[1] States need to be careful to require participants only to meet standards or complete coursework that is practical and immediately helpful to a new teacher.[2] That is, while advanced pedagogy coursework may be meaningful for veteran teachers, alternate route coursework should build on more fundamental teaching competencies such as classroom management techniques, reading instruction, or curriculum delivery.
Most new teachers—regardless of their preparation—find themselves overwhelmed by taking on their own classrooms. This is especially true for alternate route teachers, who may have had considerably less classroom exposure or pedagogy training than traditionally prepared teachers.[3] States must ensure that alternate route programs do not leave new teachers to "sink or swim" on their own when they begin teaching. It is critical that all alternate route programs provide at least a brief student teaching or other supervised practice experience for candidates before they enter the classroom, as well as ongoing induction support during those first critical months as a new teacher.[4]
[1] Constantine, J., Player, D., Silva, T., Hallgren, K., Grider, M., & Deke, J. (2009). An evaluation of teachers trained through different routes to certification. Final Report. NCEE 2009-4043. National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED504313.pdf
[2] Walsh, K., & Jacobs, S. (2007). Alternative certification isn't alternative. Thomas B. Fordham Institute, National Council on Teacher Quality. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED498382.pdf
[3] Greenberg, J., Walsh, K., & McKee, A. (2014). Teacher Prep Review: A review of the nation's teacher preparation programs. Retrieved from http://www.nctq.org/dmsView/Teacher_Prep_Review_2014_Report
[4] For a further review of the research on new teacher induction, see: Rogers, M., Lopez, A., Lash, A., Schaffner, M., Shields, P., & Wagner, M. (2004). Review of research on the impact of beginning teacher induction on teacher quality and retention. Retrieved from http://www.newteacher.com/pdf/ResearchontheImpactofInduction.pdf