Carol’s Summary:
Teach for America, an organization that hires recent college graduates to teach in low-income public schools, has become more selective in choosing graduates to teach. Even many Ivy-league graduates have had difficulty getting accepted into the non-profit program. This year, about 4,500 candidates were accepted out of over 46,000 people who applied.
Teach for America not only benefits students in low-income schools, but also offers
Résumé credentials, job security for two years, and a beginning teacher’s salary. Teach for America applicants must complete an online application, a lesson plan, a written test, a phone interview, an in-person interview and a monitored discussion.
While many agree that Teach for America is a great program to recruit and train new teachers, others have mixed feelings due to the turnover rate of the program. According to a study from Harvard, about 61 percent of teachers stay after their two-year contract ends. Others go on to graduate school or to pursue other careers. Also, some education experts and critics say that students’ academic performance is often better when they have experienced teachers.
Schools in low-income neighborhoods are in the most need of good teachers, books and other materials; Teach for America provides new teachers with hand-on experience in the professional world. LifeBound provides frequent coaching and training sessions for teachers who are looking to find new ways to connect with students and work with them to ensure maximum success. We offer curriculum ideas along with our coaching and books. To learn more about LifeBound, visit www.lifebound.com or e-mail contact@lifebound.com.
Article:
A Chosen Few Are Teaching for America
By MICHAEL WINERIP
Published: July 11, 2010
HOUSTON — Alneada Biggers, Harvard class of 2010, was amazed this past year when she discovered that getting into the nation’s top law schools and grad programs could be easier than being accepted for a starting teaching job with Teach for America.
To read the full article: www.nytimes.com
