Admission into Preparation Programs :
District of Columbia

Analysis of District of Columbia's policies

The District of Columbia does not require aspiring teachers to pass a test of academic proficiency as a criterion for admission to teacher preparation programs, instead delaying its basic skills assessment until teacher candidates are ready to apply for licensure.

Citation

D.C. Municipal Regulations 5-1601

Recommendations for District of Columbia

Require teacher candidates to pass a test of academic proficiency that assesses reading, writing and mathematics skills as a criterion for admission to teacher preparation programs.
Teacher preparation programs that do not screen candidates end up investing considerable resources in individuals who may not be able to successfully complete the program and pass licensing tests. Candidates needing additional support should complete remediation prior to program entry, avoiding the possibility of an unsuccessful investment of significant public tax dollars.

Require preparation programs to use a common test normed to the general college-bound population.
The basic skills tests in use in most states largely assess middle school-level skills.  To improve the selectivity of teacher candidates—a common characteristic in countries whose students consistently outperform ours in international comparisons—the District of Columbia should require an assessment that demonstrates that candidates are academically competitive with all peers, regardless of their intended profession. Requiring a common test normed to the general college population would allow for the selection of applicants in the top half of their class, as well as facilitate program comparison.  

Exempt candidates with comparable SAT or ACT scores.
The District of Columbia should waive the basic skills test requirement for candidates whose SAT or ACT scores demonstrate that they are in the top half of their class.

State response to our analysis

The District asserted that it has two pathways for accreditation of educator preparation units and state approval of educator preparation programs. The traditional pathway is primarily geared toward educator preparation programs housed at institutions of higher education, and the District does not require applicants to pass a basic skills test for program entry. However, independent of any District requirements, all institutions with educator preparation units accredited under the traditional pathway require that candidates pass the basic skills tests prior to being admitted.
The State-Only Post-Baccalaureate accreditation and program approval pathway is targeted primarily at organizations and local education agencies that prepare alternate route teacher candidates. The District contended that for this pathway, it requires the successful completion of the basic skills tests as a condition of entry. 
Further, the District noted that effective January 1, 2011, licensure applicants and teacher preparation program participants may use SAT, ACT and/or GRE scores to meet the basic skills testing requirement.  

Last word

The District should consider flipping its requirement, so that the basic skills test is required for traditional undergraduate preparation programs rather than for Post-Baccalaureate programs, whether traditional or alternative. As discussed in Goal 2-A, basic skills tests measure minimum competency—essentially those skills that a person should have acquired in middle school—and are inappropriate for candidates who have already earned a bachelor's degree. For graduate programs, the District should consider other measures of academic proficiency, such as the GRE.